


The Captives

by ineamare



Series: The Hunters [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Bounty Hunters, Angst, Bounty Hunters, Drug Use, F/M, M/M, Police
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2018-12-11 16:46:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 7
Words: 27,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11718417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ineamare/pseuds/ineamare
Summary: First Person AU, parallel to The Hunters:  Auxiliary Enforcement Agent Levi Ackerman has spent years solving cases in an attempt to atone for his past sins and is finally assigned to a case that gives him the chance to get revenge on the people who'd ruined his life.  During his investigation, he meets Eren, an underage prostitute who unexpectedly provides him with shot at redemption.  Mostly LevixEren, Non-con/Rape, underage, graphic violence, drug abuse. This story contains potential triggers and graphic scenes. Please read at your own discretion.   Updates every other week on Monday.





	1. Out and In

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is parallel to The Hunters, so it happens mostly at the same time but from Levi's point of view. The way you read these can completely change your experience of the story.
> 
> I suggest you read them both at the same time in the order of release. If you are going to read both at the same time, be aware that this story will consistently contain spoilers for The Hunters. This can be avoided if you read them in the staggered order of release: read the first two chapters of The Hunters, then read the first chapter of this story and alternate back and forth, staying two chapters apart.
> 
> You could also finish one fic in its entirety and then read the other, as if they were sequels of each other. But like, they're not. Or you can just read it however you want. Live your life. Don't let your dreams be dreams.
> 
> I do not own Attack on Titan.

_ 7 July, Las Vegas, NV _

I've spent my entire life getting out.  Out of this city, into that one.  Out of this case, into that one.  Out of this relationship.

Out of this life.

"Good job on capturing our rapist," Erwin smiled brightly, leaning back in his chair.  I hate being in his office.  I hate being in his precinct, and in his city.  Probably because I fucking hate  _ him _ .  

"That four-eyed freak was bad for tourism, right? Am I getting a commendation?" I replied flatly.  I could only hope the reason he called me in was to give me something new to work with.

His smile faltered, and I loved it. "You did a great service by capturing the man who was breaking into hotel rooms, stealing valuables, and raping women. Doesn't doing good please you?"

Doing good—as if  _ I _ could ever do any good.  My cases are assigned on politics.  We’re all just pawns in the game.  "He'd only raped three women and only got his hands on maybe fifty grand or so in goods when I was called. If it had been anywhere other than the Vegas Strip, you would have waited until he'd escalated to murder or police efforts had been exhausted."

He frowned. "It was a high-profile case, so we called in the best."

"You gave special treatment to your city," I spat with disdain, "and I won't help you do it again." Erwin knows better than to try and flatter me, even for her sake.  Why did he bother?

He stared at me for a moment before dropping a file unceremoniously on the desk in front of me. "Your next target is Ian Dietrich.” The second that name left his mouth, my blood boiled, and it took everything within me not to react.  “The DEA is looking at him for being a distributor for the Mexican cartel, El Corazon, but they can't pin him down. Last known is Phoenix."  He knows who Dietrich is to me.  He’s doing this on purpose, and I hate it.

I opened the file and started to read through it. "Dietrich is suspected of everything under the sun."  Why did I say that?  We both already know it.  It makes me nauseous.  So much of what I do with Erwin is going through the motions.  It makes me absolutely hate myself.  “What am I supposed to be looking into, exactly?”

"He's been a criminal his entire life, working his way up the ladder. He was the one getting his hands dirty when you met him, but now he's sitting back and raking it in. Interpol has a list a mile long. Arms deals, drug distribution, human trafficking, fraud, forgery, assaults and murders and rapes—but, of course, none of this can be  _ proved _ . Still, the evidence says it's his hand in all the pies."

I looked up at him, closing the file.  He was pretending he didn’t know I’ve always been very aware of what Dietrich has been up to.  "What do you want me to do?"  He doesn’t even have to ask me if I’ll take the case, because he knew the second he was told to assign someone to Dietrich that I would say yes.  That’d I’d kill him if he  _ didn’t _ ask me.

He shrugged with only his hands. "Like I said, DEA wants him for the cartel."

I crossed my arms.  Erwin is rarely straightforward.  "And  _ you _ ?" I repeated.

He sighed. "I don't have any concrete evidence for it, but...I'm thinking he's got ties to Titan."

I nodded.   That’s all I need, fucking hell, is to take on one of the biggest criminal organizations we know of.  "You want me to find those ties."  I didn’t even bother making it sound like a question.

"If he's working with Titan, he's doing so from here, in the Southwest. There have been increases in activity and organization related to them, and I'm sure that it's linked to him. If he's not working directly with Titan, at the very least, there's a good chance that he can lead us to them."

I tilted my head at him. "So, am I getting him for you, or for the DEA?"

"Pinch him on anything you can. Get me into his safe house, and I'll pay you." He shrugged again. "If you happen to find something for them, I'm sure the DEA will also give you something for your troubles. Hell, you might even have the good fortune of pleasing ATF, although they haven't asked for help in so many words."

"You're more devious than you look," I said. "First, you use me to save your city, then you trick the agencies into doing your bidding."

He leaned back into his chair. "You and I both know it doesn't matter. You want to take down Dietrich."  

I hate that he can play me like this. "Yes, I do."

He smiled. "You'd better get a move on, then."


	2. The Suicidal Bastard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi manages to track down Ian Dietrich and meets underage prostitute Eren.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own AoT.
> 
> Chapter Warnings: Illegal sexy times
> 
> This chapter hastily brought to you by my adventures at Saikoucon. I almost didn't update this on time at all.

_12 July, Phoenix, AZ_

When I met Ian Dietrich, he was a gangly drug monkey from Yerington, and somehow that dirty twat is running an empire now.  Lucky for me, he still likes to slum it with the bangers and the rail queens.  That means, at least for a time, that he's visible, goes out to his own meetings, and does his own dirty work.  We know he's killed with his own hands; we know he likes knives and torture; we know he's addicted to the drugs he sells—he has no mercy, no conscience, and no soul.  The thing is that we never have enough to fucking do anything about it.  He always gets away.

There are good reasons for that: he knows how to cover his tracks, he’s paranoid, and he's got men inside all areas of law enforcement.  He’s got a million foxholes, and never stays in one for too long.  So far, I've located two of his safe houses, but I didn't turn up anything useful to my investigation of Titan when I searched them.  I'll let Erwin know about them eventually, but there’s no point now.

As irritating as a game of cat and mouse can be, there's also something thrilling about tracking him down.  I’m usually only a step behind.  Still, it's only a matter of time, and that's something I have.  I eat, I sleep, I train, and I find people.  Otherwise, I go insane thinking about—whatever, fuck her.  

Today, I found Dietrich meeting with an older man and heading east.  I followed them to a run-down motel, tucked away in a forgotten fold of Satan’s armpit.  I circled the block a couple times before entering the lot.  I wouldn't normally park right next to my target, but it was the last parking space, and I wasn’t just going to dick around that shithole until opportunity struck.

I smoked a cigarette, sitting on the hood of my car, no fucking idea what was happening inside the room and not a clue how many packs I’d blow through waiting.  But, intel is intel, and I don't have many contacts remaining in this corner of the desert, so it’s best to save them and just rely on myself.  I looked around, checked my watch, and lit up again.  I'd hear something from the room every once in a while, but nothing was too telling.  A thump here or there.  A voice.  I tapped my fingers against the hood.  Judging from the surroundings, he was there for business or sex.  With the hidey-holes he had, it served no recreational purposes.  If he were handing out discipline, there would be more noise.  More likely that it was a deal, although sex could go either way.

I was getting down to the end of my next cigarette, debating smoking one more when the door opened.  Dietrich stepped out of the room, followed by the man, who I still haven’t identified. "Hey, Jaeger.  Looks like you've got someone waiting on you."  

I immediately started thinking of how to approach my interrogation of this "Jaeger," but paused the moment I looked inside the room.  I couldn't school my features quite quickly enough; I didn't expect to see some young brat, naked as he came, spread eagle on his back; he didn't sit up fast enough for me to miss seeing his perfectly pink asshole, still wet and gaping from his last fuck.  He smiled at me wearily, and I took one last drag before flicking away what was left of the cigarette.  I entered, scrutinizing him the entire time, every last gorgeous detail—anyway, something told me that interrogation as I usually handle it wouldn't be the best approach.

"What can I do for you tonight?" he asked, clearly trying to regain his composure despite the fact that he looked about ready to pass out.  Up close, he looked even younger than I had originally thought.  I immediately hated myself for thinking for even a fraction of a second that he was completely fuckable.

"Take a shower," I said. The air was thick and foul with the stench of sex, and I’m not so much of a monster to make him talk to me like that.  "I don't like leftovers,” I added, not entirely sure if I wanted to play the John angle yet, “and you're filthy."  Honestly, the problem was less the way he'd feel being interrogated while naked and disgusting and more that I had no desire to deal with it.  It was just better if he put some damn clothes on because _God_ , it didn't even look like the kid had pubes, and somehow I was sporting a semi.

"O-okay, sure."  He thought I was being rude, and I felt a rare pang of remorse.  A small one, but I felt it all the same.  It's not as if people usually sell themselves when they think they have other options, and it occurred to me that I wasn't helping.  I leaned on the door jam of the bathroom with my arms crossed as he started the water.  "So, what should I call you?"  His voice was even softer and sweeter than before; he spoke with a genuine tone that spoke to his exhaustion rather than trying to convince me he was an Energizer sex bunny.

"Corporal," I replied easily.  I picked up that nickname a long time ago, and using my real name is rarely preferable.  I don’t exactly expect that Jaeger is this kid's actual name either.

"Oh, so you're a military man?"

"Not quite."  He didn't respond to that, and I took a moment to study him through the non-existent shower curtain. His body was littered with scars, bruises, bites, hickeys, and nail marks; I watched as he traced over these with a small bar of cheap soap.  I saw in his actions feelings that I’ve always felt: self-loathing and worthlessness, being tired of being alive and hollow and empty.  Feelings that hit too close to home for comfort.  

I turned back toward the bed and tried not to think too hard about it.  The more I looked around, the more I tried not to pity him.  I couldn’t help but frown; I’ve been here too, and it’s no fucking picnic.  Your home’s a shithole, nothing works, nothing’s really comfortable, but you’re too exhausted to care, and you know it’s bad, but you ignore it because it’s your only home.   I glanced back toward him to see if he was paying attention, and since it didn't seem like it, I made a quick trip back out to the van.  In that moment I decided that I might as well get rid of this stupid-ass blanket because it was the last thing of hers I had, and maybe if I stopped seeing it out of the corner of my eye all the goddamn time I might stop getting angry about it.  If it marginally improves his quality of life, then I’ve done my good deed for the day.

I returned to my place in the bathroom doorway and immediately averted my eyes at the sight of him with one arm outstretched, leaning against the wall, where the spray of water ran down his gracefully arched back and the curve of his ass, where his other hand was delicately seated, his fingers sliding easily in and out of that sweet, little puckered—

"What do you know about the two who were just here?" I asked in an attempt to distract myself from the grossly obscene thing he was doing.

"Nothing, really.  First time they've been here.  Didn't give me names.  The blond one wanted to fuck me while the older one watched."  That was interesting information: I doubt Dietrich just woke up this morning and decided to try diddling little boys, and it’s unlikely that droves of underage males are whoring themselves out in this city.  For him to have only come once makes me think that he really _does_ have ties to Titan. With them, he'd have access to a regular supply. "That's about all there is to it."

I only grunted in response. I would be lying if I said I wasn't hoping for more, considering how long I’d spent waiting around, but it’s better than nothing. The man who accompanied him may be his contact with Titan. The more I think about it, the more I think that there was a reason they had come to see this kid together. I don't find that pleasing at all. It only means that there won't be anything good in his future.

He walked past me and I stepped aside, making a point not to look at him. I figured that he'd had enough of being stared at that he didn’t need me doing it either, never mind that he’s goddamn gorgeous and were he older, I’d already have been screwing him into the wall.  I’ve never been above paying for sex.  "So, I take it you were following them," he asked as he dressed.

I thought about my answer for a moment, but really, there was no harm in being honest with him.  If anything, I felt compelled to do so, for some reason beyond my own comprehension.  "Yes," I answered finally.  I glanced at him standing there, grabbing a towel.  I had to remind myself that I didn't need to know how old he was to know that it wasn't old enough.  "I didn't expect to be led to a prostitute." No, that wasn't what surprised me about the situation.  It was the kid himself.  "It's not in his M.O., so to speak." Most of the intel I've gotten is about the drugs and some possible associates.  Nothing about pedophilia, which is totally what it is for an adult to fuck him. Titan doesn't deal exclusively in children, after all.

"Right. So, I guess you won't be needing my services, then?"

I’m not sure why I did it, but I can come up with any number of excuses.  It’s been a while since I’ve slept with a man.  He was offering.  Maybe I’ve just never noticed that I’m a pervert.  Whatever it was, he was precious and perfect, and I ignored all the alarm bells in my head.  "I didn't say that," I replied, stepping forward and reaching out to touch him.  There was still a small part of my brain screaming at how much of a shitty idea this was, but I chose to listen to my dick like a dumb, teenage brat.  In thirty years of life, I haven't learned impulse control, and when he blushed, all I wanted to do was plow him into the mattress.

"Well, then, why don't I show you what I can do?"  His little sex kitten act probably worked on his clients, but I found it more irritating than anything else and pushed him away.

"I don’t want you to put on a show for me."  It’s always obvious when my partner is faking it, and it makes my dick limp.  "I want you to tell me what you actually like and what you don't.  I want you to enjoy it, and I _don't_ want you to fake it."

"Yes, Corporal."  It wasn't very convincing, but I was satisfied with that, and pulled him in for a kiss.  He didn't react immediately, but his movements complemented mine nicely when he did.  His hands moved up my chest and I pulled him closer, tilting his head so I could deepen the kiss.  More of my lovers have been taller than me than not, so I'm used to dealing with the height difference, although it seemed like he was finding it difficult to adjust to.  It didn’t matter once we were horizontal.  I pulled back from the kiss just to push him toward the bed, then sat above him—last chance to avoid a sex offender registry.  But fuck it, he was handsome, and he didn't seem to hate it, and we were already there, so I kissed him again.  I've never cared about risks or consequences, so why should I start now?

I held his hand by his head with my left and slid my right hand under his shirt, pressing my thumb against his nipple, which he seemed to like. I ran my hand down his chest and back up again, playing with his nipples just enough to make them perk up.  I hadn't been with anyone in such a long time that the anticipation itself made me hard, and I rolled my hips into his.

"Corporal," came his soft moan, doing nothing to bolster my self-control.  I pushed him further back onto the bed and pushed up his shirt, grinding against him more before closing my lips around one of his nipples.  He purred and mewled as I touched him, driving me wild, and I kissed him again, my hands roaming happily around his chest.  Another moment passed before he rolled his hips up into mine, and _fuck_ it took everything within me to hold back; it was clear that he was ready for more, but I'd already told him that I wanted him to _say_ what he wanted, and while moaning like that was encouraging, he was hardly using words.

I stared down at him after his second attempt at persuading me with his hips and reminded him that I wasn’t going to do anything until he fucking said so.  The little shit averted his eyes, like he was embarrassed, and told me he wanted more.  I brought my lips to his ear and whispered, "more what?"

"I—I want you to fuck me."

Final-fucking-ly, I had consent, ignoring the fact that he likely couldn’t legally give it.  I paused a moment to admire him.  It was hard to determine how old he was.  A part of me hoped desperately that he was just a twink, using as many tricks to look young as he could.  Some moments I looked at him, and he looked like only a kid, but a second later, he would look more like a man.  Anyway, the faces he made were irresistible, so I just kept praying for the latter.  As I latched onto his neck, he bucked his hips again, grabbing my shoulders tightly.  I worked on his pants, pulling them down and then standing up to take off my own clothes.  I didn't take the time to fold them—I'm not as crazy as people like to believe—but I did keep them all in one neat pile, unlike that brat, who let his clothes land haphazardly around the room as he stripped.  I got back on the bed, on my knees in front of him.

He blushed prettily, saying that he wanted to put a condom on me.  I obliged, not having a preference either way in the matter.  As long as we used one.  "Are you nervous?" I asked in a low tone, completely aroused.

"Of course not," he said with a smile, but without confidence. "I've done this a million times."

I found myself responding, "You've never done it with _me,_ " quite unconsciously.  I don’t know where the fuck my brain got that from, but then again, it was the same brain that said ‘fuck the kid,’ so I guess it doesn’t really matter.  I did notice quite happily as I began to touch and stretch his entrance that he'd shaved his pubes, probably to give the impression to the perverts that he _was_ younger and hairless.  I didn't stop to think about it more than that.  

I took my time inside of him, making a point to touch every little bit of hot, silky flesh, taking an agonizingly slow pace as I slid my fingers in and out, making scissoring motions to make sure he was thoroughly stretched out. He pushed against me, forcing my fingers just a bit deeper, but I only added one more, keeping my slow pace. Instead of saying anything to me about it, he continued to buck his hips and wrapped his hand around his cock, all the while making tiny, sexy noises.  I wanted so badly to be inside of him, to fist him, to put my lips on that delicious little—fucking shit, though, I wasn't going to make a move unless I was sure he really wanted me to do it.  Auxiliary Enforcement Agent Levi Ackerman only breaks the law when explicitly begged to.

Finally, he growled impatiently, "Corporal, what are you waiting for?"

 _Nothing anymore_ , I thought with a chuckle, half in amusement and half in relief, pulling my fingers out and putting my head to his entrance.  "I promise to make you scream," was the next stupid-ass thing I said to him, holding his hips as I penetrated him, no longer taking my time.  He moaned, making a gorgeous sound that made me bite my lip in pleasure.  I fit snugly inside of him, and it took every single shred of patience I had left to not just start fucking him hard; my muscles screamed at me for holding back.  I waited for him to give me some sort of indicator that he was ready, and he did so with a nod.  I pulled almost all the way out of him slowly before pushing back all the way in and pressing hard, enjoying the way he moaned and grabbed at me.  I couldn't stand going that slowly anymore and quickly picked up the pace, finding a comfortable rhythm and focusing on finding his prostate and responding to his actions, trying to ignore the delicious way his body contracted around my shaft.

He moaned loudly, and I asked, "Does it feel good?"  I’m usually good at knowing when they’re faking, but he did this for a living, after all.  I pressed harder into him, holding him tightly, trying different angles.

"Uh-huh," he replied loudly, his nails breaking the skin of my back painfully before he screamed.

I shuddered with desire; it makes me absolutely insane when I hear a moan like that.  It was exactly what I wanted, but the little chicken shit started to bite his moans back.  "Hey," I groaned, "don't do that. If you silence yourself, I'll have to try harder."

Soon the moans started loudly again, and I adjusted my pace once more. "You see, I always keep my promises," I said, although I couldn't quite catch my breath, "and I promised to make you scream."  I slammed into the same place, and he did scream again, making my lower regions swell in delight.  "Did you like that?"

"Yes! Don't...don't stop!"

I continued to fuck him hard, relishing the sounds that made it past his open lips, watching him stroke himself through his orgasm. He clamped down on my dick, and I moaned, unable to hold back anymore. "Jaeger," I gasped, thrusting into him as I came. Forget how long ago I had sex—it hadn’t been that intense since Petra and I were together.  I pulled out with a short, satisfied sigh and turned around, rolling the condom carefully down my shaft and tying it off before throwing it in the garbage can.

"What if I see those guys again?" he panted.

Honestly, I'd forgotten all about Dietrich.  Why should I waste more brain power on that cunt muffin than I have to?  "I lost the trail by staying here, but I would have blown it then, since he noticed me. I'd like it if you let me know."  I started over toward the bathroom.  "I'll leave my number for you."

"Okay."

I stood in the doorway of the bathroom, stopping to ask, "Could I shower here?"  I didn’t want to be an asshole and just assume it was fine.

"If you don't mind that the hot water doesn't work."

I shrugged. Cold water was better anyway. I turned on the water and stepped into the stall, cringing slightly at how much the droplets of water stung like bits of ice. It was only another moment before I started to feel numb to it. I just wanted enough to get the spunk off, anyway. It wouldn't do to leave it alone and then not be able to take a piss later.

A few minutes later I stepped out and, seeing that he'd left my clothes in the bathroom for me, dressed quickly. "Jaeger," I said, leaning against the opening, "what do I owe you?"

"Nothing," he muttered. "Don't worry about it." He looked especially like a kid again, burying his blushing face into the blanket I'd left there.  It made me uncomfortable and frankly, I don’t want to think about it.  "This one's on me."

"Are you sure?" Paying him was the least I could do at that point.

"Yes."

I let out a breath. "Why don't you keep that blanket?"  I didn’t fucking want it, but he didn’t know that was the reason I put it there in the first place.

"Huh? Really?"

"I don't want it. It's gross," I replied, putting on my jacket.

"Oh. Right." He looked just a little sadder, and another pang of guilt arose within me.  I hadn't meant that I disliked him.  I just didn't want to carry Petra's shit around anymore.  It’s been years since we were together, and she’s married and pregnant.  It was a dumb thing to still have.

"You're really not that bothered, are you? Sitting there naked in front of me," were the words that came from my mouth instead of an apology.  I’m much more suited to topic changes anyway.

He forced a laugh. "I guess I don't have much shame left."  He stood and put on some clothes that were lying about.

I only grunted in response.  Yet another silence passed painfully between us.  He stammered a bit.  "My phone number," I said.

"Right. Uh…"  He looked around.

I rolled my eyes.  "Pen and paper?"  It was sitting right there beside him, the idiot.

"Here," he said, blushing again, handing me the items.  I started to write, but no ink came out.  Because the situation wasn't fucked enough.  I tried one more time, scribbling along the side of the page to no avail before tossing it in the bin.

"I've got one in the van," I said, stepping outside.  Cold, fresh air hit my face as I opened the door, and it felt like time and reality had caught up to me, to that stuffy room, to the unbelievable fuck I just had with a goddamn kid.  I grabbed the pen from the glove compartment, wrote down my number, and handed both the pen and paper back to him.  "Here," I said.  He took the pad and looked at me for a second.  "The pen, too," I added with thinly veiled irritation. _Idiot._

"Well, thanks," he said, crossing his arms, presumably from the cold.  "I'll let you know if I find anything out."

It didn't matter.  It’ll probably amount to nothing.  "Jaeger...look."  My dumb-ass conscience was kicking in again. "Don't bother me with anything unnecessary. But, if you get into trouble, you can call me."  Dietrich might not ever come back, but if he does, it won’t end well, and even _I_ can't ignore that.

He smiled, and I had to look away. "Thanks, Corporal."

"Whatever."  I gave a curt nod and reached into my pocket for my keys.  "Keys," I mumbled frustratedly.

"Huh?"

"My keys."  Good _God_ , this night didn’t want to end.  "Maybe they fell out in your room."

He tilted his head and looked at me quizzically.  "How did you open the car?"

I rolled my eyes again.  If he just spent half a second using common sense instead of blurting out whatever came into his head, he'd look a lot less stupid.  "I never locked it. But I need them to _drive._ "

"I'll go check."  I followed him back into the room, and immediately the smell assaulted me again.  That stench of all the men he'd been with for the day.

"Why don't you open a window," I said, trying not to act like I was thoroughly disgusted.

"On it."  As he set out for that, I checked beside the bed, thinking that maybe they'd fallen out when I undressed, or when he picked up my clothes.  I was right, finding them hiding just a bit under the bed.

"Found them."

"Okay. Drive safe."

"Hm." It was apparent that he felt just as awkward about the entire situation as I did.  He probably didn't spend too much time speaking with his customers.  Another short nod, and I was out the door.  I felt disgusted and upset with myself.   What the hell was I thinking?

But a proper shower, an hour in the hotel gym, a meal, and another shower was enough for me to clear my head. It was just sex, and now it’s over.  There’s nothing I can do to change it.  Hange always tells me I create all my own problems by dwelling too much on the past anyway.

No, I’ll just continue my mission.

I’ll forget about the brat with the brown hair and the green eyes.


	3. Unfriendlies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After losing Dietrich's trail, Levi consults with the Phoenix Police Department, headed by Commander Smith's friend, Commander Gunter Schultz. Schultz agrees to provide his assistance and introduces Levi to Detective Ilse Langnar, who gives Levi some startling information about what's been going on in the city.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own AoT. This chapter hasn't been beta'd, sorry not sorry.

_13 July, Phoenix, AZ_

Today has been a good day so far, I guess.  I’m very sure that I’m sitting outside yet another one of Dietrich’s many hiding places, but _fuck me_ , nothing is happening yet, and it’s goddamn boring. At the very least, I’ve seen enough to know this place is connected to him, even if he isn’t involved directly in handling what goes on inside.  He’s not here himself, but some of his crew is, including his right-hand woman, Rico Brzenska.  She’s terrifyingly calculating and beyond capable with a variety of weapons—intel says that she rose through the ranks along with Dietrich, and like him, takes pleasure in doing her own dirty work.  I don’t know her myself; she came after my time.

In any case, her presence means it’s safe to say that it’s worth sitting here holding my piss—so far I can tell that they’ve unsurprisingly been moving ice and speed, but I haven’t been able to get much more than that yet.  This is all well and good for the fucking DEA, but doesn’t do shit for my Titan investigation.  But there’s something else moving through that I don’t recognize, and Brzenska is too high on the food chain for what appears to be a relatively minor operation.  Unfortunately, I can’t get closer than I am at the moment, so I’ll take the time to write this now.  It still feels fucking stupid, but I guess Hange was right to make me start keeping a journal, and I just have to keep reminding myself of how important that is.

So here’s the same shit I write every day: slept about four hours, had a protein shake, hit the gym, jumped in the shower while ignoring Erwin’s messages.  He’s made it more than clear that he hates that, but I don’t have anything to say to him.  I’ve gathered a couple of good bits of information for myself, but most of it is garbage to him without a full-scale task force, and by the time that could be amassed, there’d be nothing left to chase.  There’s only so much I can do on my own against Dietrich, and either way, I’m only meant to find the evidence.

Personal vendettas aside, I’m not suicidal enough to confront Dietrich or his goons, and Erwin isn’t insane enough to ask me to.  And anyway, I still can’t think of yesterday without thinking of fucking Jaeger.

Cooked eggs, made tea, watched the news.  I pay particular attention to any reports on television or in the paper that might relate to my investigations, and most of the time I can go to the local LEOs about it without issues. Sometimes I have to make Erwin push them into it.  Sometimes they tell me to fuck off.  Law enforcement is just as much of a pissing contest as anything else when it comes to taking charge of a case.  Everyone wants the leads, the evidence, and the glory, and some of them are loath to share even the tiniest scrap of it, despite the fact that we’re all supposed to be on the same side.  I couldn’t care any less about getting credit.  I would just as soon remain anonymous.  I do this because I’m good at it, because it gives me a purpose, and because I don’t know how else to atone.

My phone rang, but I didn’t bother to reach for it.  Anyone who knows me knows that I ignore my phone most of the time, and if whoever was calling didn’t know me, then they had no business calling.  It was probably just Erwin, and he knows how to actually get my attention if the situation warranted it.

After more or less procrastinating for the entire morning, seeing as how there wasn’t much in the news about the local crime lord, I got my laptop and files out.  It wouldn’t do to just sit out front of Dietrich’s known haunts and places of interest, hoping to spot him.  And anyway, work is always a welcome distraction.  If I’m focused, I’m not thinking of Carson City.  Of Furlan and Isabel.  Of Petra.  Of Jaeger.

I can’t figure out why that brat means anything to me, and it’s making me fucking insane.  He’s just another lost soul in the desert.

* * *

_14 July, Phoenix, AZ_

Before continuing my search for fuckwad, I gave everything I had on Brzenka’s op from yesterday to the DEA and they said they’d keep me in the loop.  For sure.

I made tea and read the police blotter; Phoenix Vice had picked up two dealers in Gilbert, and I made a mental note to contact them about it later.  I was more interested in picking up where I’d left off with Dietrich.

I found him around 12:40.  Lost him at 13:00.  Found him again at 14:23.  Lost him again at 15:51.

I nearly threw my phone off of a bridge around 15:53, but thought better of it.  Instead, I opted for calling Commander Schultz.  It might have been nothing, but I needed to at least ask about the Gilbert dealers, and I remembered that Erwin was on a first name basis with him.  If he wanted to give me trouble, I’d just sic Erwin on him.

The line rang twice.  “Phoenix Police Department.”

“Auxiliary Enforcement Agent Ackerman for Commander Schultz.”  I added on a please for good measure.

“Please hold.”   There was a second of silence, then a ring.  Another.  A few more.  I rolled my eyes.  The line clicked and rang a couple more times.  I was about to hang up when someone answered.

“Lieutenant Bozado.”

I held in my sigh.  “Yes, this is Enforcement Agent Ackerman—”

The man on the other end scoffed.  I occasionally got this irritating response from LEOs who hate hunters.  “Please have your commanding officer contact the department if you need case files, thank you.”  He hung up.  I reconsidered throwing my phone off the bridge.  Annoyingly, my next call went out to Erwin.

“Levi, how’s the—”

“Phoenix is boxing me out.  Could you get me in touch with Schultz?”

“Really?  Gunter gave you trouble?”

I grumbled.  “Lieutenant Bozado heard the words ‘Enforcement Agent’ and hung up.”

Erwin laughed much more than was warranted.  “Oh, yeah, that guy _would_ do that.  Okay, let me call Gunter.  Is it okay if I forward him your number?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever.”

“Okay.  Expect his call soon.”

“Yeah.”

“That means you’ll have to hit the green button when the phone vibrates.”

“Understood.”  I hit the red button.  “Asshole.”  I fucking hate Erwin, but he did pull through.  My phone rang with a Phoenix area code about fifteen minutes later.

“Ackerman.”

“Yes, this is Commander Schultz.  Commander Smith told me you needed assistance on a case you’re working for him?”

“Right.  I was hoping to get some information on the Vice collar in Gilbert.  I know you’re not the person to ask for case files, but—”

“Actually, it’s better that you ask me.  We had to hand it over to DEA, so you’ll have to bother them for the actual reports, but I can maybe answer your questions and put you in touch with the detectives who handled it.”

Finally, someone willing to work with me.  “That would be great.”

“Listen, I’m on my way to a scene in the Warehouse District.  Why don’t you join me?  South Central and East Buchanan.  You can ask away.”

“Thank you, sir.”  The fact that they had to turn over the case gave me hope that it meant something.  Those two weren’t slinging just anything if those twats wanted to take over.

When I arrived on scene, some uniformed asswipe didn’t want to believe I was who I said I was and called Schultz over, who recognized my name and grinned.  “Thanks for making the trip, Agent Ackerman.”  He lifted up the tape to let me through, and I sneered at the officer who ‘hadn’t ever heard of an Auxiliary Enforcement Agent’ and 'couldn’t trust my badge.'

“Of course, sir.”  I followed him past evidence markers toward what was obviously a body, although it already had been covered.

“While we’re here, I’m going to introduce you to Detective Langnar.  She’ll be lead on this case,” he continued, “but she used to be Vice, and might be able to help with your questions as well.”  As we approached the body, he called for the detective.  A woman with short black hair and freckles turned to face us.

“Yes, Commander?”

“I want you to meet Auxiliary Enforcement Agent Ackerman.”

“Ooh,” she sneered.  “A real-life bounty hunter, huh?”

“In the flesh,” I drolled.

She put one hand on her hip.  “And what can we do for the hunter today, Commander?”

“You can direct your speech toward him.”  When ranked officers give me shit, I usually take it, but detectives don’t have any authority over me, and they shouldn’t fucking act like it.

“Okay,” the Commander interjected, “let’s play nice.  Agent Ackerman is here to ask about a case.”  Schultz looked back at me.  “Erwin says that you’ve been working this neck of the woods for a while now, right?”

I nodded.  “The Southwest is my specialty.”

“In return for our help, I’m hoping we can pick your brain?”

“Certainly, sir.”

“Okay.  Langnar?”

She didn’t look happy with the arrangement, but I didn’t come to make her happy.  I came to work my case.  “What do you want to know?”

“What do you know about the Gilbert collar from last night?”  She looked toward Commander Schultz as if asking permission to talk about it.  He nodded, and her attention came back to me.  

“Repeat offenders.  They had a bunch of standard fare, but the reason why the DEA stole the case was because we found heart-shaped ecstasy.”

“Love Bug?  That’s not a street drug.”  It’s still new: ecstasy laced with sedatives and some other bullshit to make for docile whores.  It’s a favorite among traffickers, and has been found during almost every Titan raid in the past year.

“We were told a couple of months ago to keep a look out for it, but this is the first time it’s showed up.  How do you know it?”

“I do a lot of trafficking cases.”  I rubbed my chin.  “Dealing or using?”

“We’re not sure,” Schultz answered.  “They had enough for intent to sell, but compared to the rest of their stash…”

Langnar suggested her theory.  “I’m thinking it was a trial run.  If it sold, they’d get bigger shipments.”

“Not bad.”  I crossed my arms.  It’s not a good sign.  If someone’s trying to push Love Bug, then it’s either hitting the streets as a date rape drug, or it means there’s a trafficking ring in the area.  “Who are these repeat offenders?”

“Oh, they’ve been working the desert for years.  Rap sheets a mile long.  Church and, uh...Magnolia.”

My blood ran cold.  “Furlan Church and Isabel Magnolia?”

“Them’s the ones.  You know 'em?”

“I do.”  More than anyone knows.  “Okay.  I’d have to ask DEA for the specs, right?”

She smirked.  “I’m sure they’ll be more than willing to help out.”  She was being a real bitch.

“No less than you’ve been.”  I looked at the Commander.  “No offense, sir.”

“It’s hard for a hunter, isn’t it?”  Schultz seemed good-natured enough, or maybe Erwin just really talked me up.

“Not when I work with officers like yourselves.”  I hate flattery, but it works.

“Is it my turn, now?” Langnar asked impatiently.

“I suppose.”

She rolled her eyes and crouched beside the body, removing the sheet to reveal a dark-haired young man with tan skin—my brain betrayed me with a thought back to Jaeger.  “Come take a look at this.”  She pointed to the victim’s left hip, to where there was a heart-shaped brand.  “The bodies are piling up.  Males, sixteen to twenty, brown or black hair, showing up with this mark.”

“A pet?”  Sex slaves, branded on the left hip by their owners.  My experience with them was limited.  They were less victims of trafficking and more indentured servants.  An overwhelming number were junkies with debts to pay.

“It looks that way.  But, we can’t figure out whose brand this is.  And he keeps killing pets.”

“He?”

“Speculation," she shrugged, waving her hand simply as if it didn't matter.  "They all show up in places like this, dumpsters and parking lots.  Ligature marks around the wrists and neck, various knife cuts, and always sodomized.”

“Foreign object, or…”

“Does it matter?  He doesn’t leave any DNA behind.”  As likely as it was that a man was behind it, I disagreed with making assumptions like that.

“How many?  How long?”

“The first one showed up about...eighteen months ago?  This is number six.”

“The brand doesn’t match any case I’ve worked.”  I shrugged.  “I don’t think I’ve seen it before, but I know who I can call to ask, if you send me photos.”

She sighed.  “I’d appreciate that.”

“I can bring my stuff to the station later if you want to look for yourself.”

Her face brightened.  “Oh, please?”  Yeah, now she wants to act grateful.

“Sure thing.”  I turned back to Schultz.  “Commander, if there’s nothing else, I should try my luck with the DEA.”

“Of course.  When you come to the station, we can introduce you to the vice detectives who arrested them.”

“Sounds great.” I shook his hand.  “See you then.”

I didn’t feel like dealing with the fucks at the Phoenix Field Office again, since I’d already been dicked around enough for the morning.  Instead of going after the case files I’d likely never be granted access to, I went to the range.  Erwin has always outfitted me with a Glock when I’m contracted, but for this case he’s allowing me to carry my personal Sig.  I have no intention is discharging my weapon—the paperwork is a headache, and I honestly don’t care for guns—but there’s a lot of difference between my .45 and the department’s 9 mil, so if I’m going to bother packing that much heat, then I’m going to remind myself of its kick.

Eventually I got around to collecting files for Langnar and called the cell number she’d written on the back of her business card.  “Langnar,” she answered.

“It’s Ackerman.  Are you free for me to stop by?”

“Oh shit.  I forgot.  I’m out for drinks with a couple others, but they’re heading out.  I could wait for you?”

I didn’t mind a drink.  “Sure.”

“I’ll text you the address?”

“I’ll be there soon.”  The bar was crowded for a Monday, and I found her waiting in a booth toward the back.  An empty glass sat in front of her.  “What are you having, Langnar?”

“Please, we’re off duty—Ilse is fine.”

“Okay, what are you having, _Ilse_ ,” I repeated.

She laughed.  “Gin and tonic.”  She stood.  “But let me do it—they’ll serve a pretty woman faster than a scary man.”

I almost chuckled.  “Whiskey sour.”  I reached for my wallet.

“No, no.  I asked you out, so first round’s on me.”

“Suit yourself.”  

She didn’t take long to return, placing the drink down in front of me and taking her seat.  “So, what about you?  Or are you going to make me call you Ackerman?”

I sipped my drink.  “Levi.”

She grinned.  “That name suits you.”

“So does yours.”  A few minutes passed in silence as we drank.

“Big talker, you are,” she joked, her drink half gone.

I swirled my glass.  “Is that a surprise?”  She shook her head.  “If not to talk shop, then what did you invite me for?” I had a feeling I already knew the answer.

She leaned her head into her hand.  “You’re an attractive man.”

I smirked.  “Did you intend to get me drunk?”

“Do I have to?”

“Not really.”  This is the sort of way I usually have sex.  I hoped it might even help get my mind off of things.  But I like to be very clear with my partners.  "I'm a one-night-stand kind of man."

She shrugged.  "I'm a one-night-stand kind of woman."

I followed her back to her apartment, and she was more of a slob than I'd expected, although it seemed she was more the type of woman to wake up like a whirlwind and clean up after work or on her day off.  The same type of woman who mounts a man she'd met hours before over a boy’s tortured corpse.  The same type of woman who likes it bare and wants her jugs sucked and lets me powerwash her piss flaps—and that's all I ever ask for, because it's my favorite fucking thing.  The rest was just because I got off on watching her enjoy herself, and I'm nothing if not polite.

"So," she asked, getting up from the bed, her perky little tits bouncing just a little, "interested in a little post-coital case file review?"

“There’s nothing I love more after a good fuck than looking at pictures of murdered little boys.”  I stood and made my way to my discarded pants.  “Can I smoke?”

“Sure.  You brought your files in with you, right?”  

“They’re in my bag.”  Wherever I’d put that down when we came in.  As she left the room, I found my pack and lit up.  Before getting back on the bed, I coaxed my stupidly tight jeans back up my legs.  “You’re getting dressed?”

I let my cock hang out of my open fly and gestured to it.  “You just want me to sit here with my floppy-ass dick out?  Hanging out all over the place?  Asking me to move my left nut so you can see what the victim had in his right hand?”

She crossed her arms in just the right place to conveniently push up her breasts.  That doesn’t do much for me.  I like them small.  “You can’t just control where your own body parts are?”

“It’s like a saggy tit; it just goes wherever.  Not that you’d know.”  She looked almost pleased at the compliment.  “You will when you’re older.”

The smile dropped off her face.  “You think you’ll look so special in fifteen years?”

“I’ll be a dried-up shit by then.”  I stuffed my dick back in my pants and zipped up before I sat on the edge of the bed holding my cig.  “You got an ashtray?”

“By the window.”  I got up to find it while she settled down on the bed with the files.  “Mind if I bum one?”

I handed her my pack and lighter.  “Be my guest.”  I took the first file on her stack.  “Are these all the murders?”

“Uh huh.”  She opened up my bag.  “What did you bring?”

“Everything I have on hand about sex trafficking.”

“On hand?” She flipped through a case from Salt Lake City.

“I’ve got copies of things at home.  And like I said, there’s someone I could call for help.”  I skimmed the file on the body found earlier that day before moving to the next one.

She flashed me a knowing smile.  “Are those authorized copies?”

“Not strictly.”

She laughed and closed the one she’d been looking at.  “Utah, huh?  You really do work with a lot of departments, don’t you?”

“Commander Smith works with a lot of departments,” I corrected.  “I beg for scraps.”

She went quiet.  “I guess I didn’t have to be a bitch earlier, did I?”

No.  “I’m used to it.  Besides, you’re helping now.”

“If doing your job is such a pain in the ass, why not just...become a LEO instead?  I mean, you’re basically one step above P.I.”

I shot her a dirty look.  “What makes you feel so superior?  What are you, like seven?  Mommy and daddy proud of you?”

She frowned.  “Don’t assume things about my life.”

“Don’t assume things about mine.”  

She didn’t say anything for a minute.  We filled the silence with rustling paper.  “I’m twenty-eight.”

“I’m thirty.  Respect your elders.”

She watched as I tapped my ashes into the little ceramic plate and chuckled.  “You’re not what I expected.”

“I rarely am.”  I’d reached the case of the fourth victim.  “Hey.  Is there a file in there from Twin Falls?”

“Um…” She buzzed her lips.  “Yes.”  She opened it up.  “Raid in Twin Falls, Idaho that recovered seventeen missing persons.  Oh, shit—”  She stiffened in realization and looked up at me.  “Isn’t this a Titan case?”

“It is.”  I held up the picture of the murder victim from her case.  “I think he’s one of the ones we didn’t find.”

She flipped through my file.  “What do you mean, didn’t find?”

“In the house, they had a roster with thirty-two names and photos.  We only found twenty-six captives because six of them had already been sold off.”

“And you didn’t find those sales records, did you?”

“No.  And not all of the victims had been reported missing.  So some of them are still completely unknown.”

She found his picture and stabbed at it with her finger.  “Dennis.  That looks just like him.”

I nodded.  “It’s a start.”

“Was he one of the people with an open missing persons case?  Do we have any idea where I can start looking?”

“I don’t really remember.  I’ll have to make some calls and get back to you.”

“Can I make copies of this?”  

“I don’t care.”

She got off the bed and laughed, “If I get in trouble, I’m going to tell everyone you gave them to me.”

“I’ll tell them you stole it.”  While she went into another room, I looked at the photos of the murdered boys to see if I recognized any more.  I didn’t think it was a coincidence that one of these poor souls was a Titan victim when that was just the sort of evidence I’d been sent to find.  I had to find Dietrich again.  The boys had been tied up and mutilated by knives, and it’s well known that blades are Dietrich’s weapon of choice.

“Know any of the other vics?”  Ilse stood in the doorway.

“Unfortunately not.  But I have some notes back at my hotel I want to sift through.  Our cases might be connected.  Would Schultz give me official copies of these?”

“I don’t see why not.”  She was putting the Idaho file back in my bag with the rest.  “Can I ask what you’re working on?”

“Officially, I’m looking into Ian Dietrich.”

She froze.  “What the fuck are you in Phoenix for, looking for that guy?”

I actually let out a laugh.  “Are you shitting me?  You guys didn’t know he was here?”

Her eyes widened.  “We knew Brzenka was here—Dietrich is _here_?  Last known was Juarez!”

I shook my head.  “DEA tracked him moving Corazon shipments to through Tucson to Brzenka.  He’s been here and there for months.”

She laughed incredulously.  “So that’s why they were so quick to steal the Church-Magnolia case.”

“Probably.”

“Well, shit.”  She ran a hand through her hair.  “So, what does ‘officially’ mean?”

I crushed my butt into the ashtray.  “I was officially hired to help the DEA locate Dietrich.”

“Why are they being assholes to you then?”

“Because that’s all they want me to do.  Find him and get the fuck out of their way.  They want me to have access to as little as possible.”

“That’s stupid,” she scoffed.  “What are you doing walking around with Titan cases then?”

“Commander Smith thinks there’s a connection between Titan and Dietrich.  He’s been after Titan for years.”

“So, unofficially, you’re not truly here for Dietrich at all.”

“Oh, I _want_ Dietrich,” I spat nastily.  “But yes—I’m technically following Titan-related cases, wherever those take me.”

She didn’t look at me for a minute.  “You do all this, all alone, barely any resources, always on the road, LEOs giving you shit, and you don’t even get any of the glory when the case is done.”  

I kept my gaze down on my file.  “Glory is overrated.”

“At the very least, you deserve respect.”  She extended her hand to me.  “If you need a friend in Phoenix, you’ve got one.”

I looked her in the eyes for the first time since I was inside her and shook her hand affirmatively.  “If you need someone to do illegal shit, you’ve got one.”  Her eyes are the color of honey.

She laughed again.  She does that a lot.  “That’s enough work for tonight, don’t you think?”

“Yeah.”  I started to clean up the mess I’d made of her files.  “I should get going.”

She grabbed the stack I made and set them on the floor.  “You’re welcome to stay.”

I stood.  “Isn’t it better if I don’t?”  I hate the morning after.

“If you say so.”  She came to the edge of the bed where I was and spread her legs.  “How about one for the road?”

I got on my knees in front of her and ran my hands up her thighs.  “I wouldn’t turn down the chance to feel you get wet in my mouth again.”

She blushed and threaded her fingers through my hair.  “Will you like it as much now that you’re not sucking your own cream out?”

I licked my lips.  “The only thing I like more than eating pussy is hearing how much _you_ like it.”

She hooked her leg over my shoulder.  The smell of her made me hard.  “I’ll be more than happy to show my appreciation.”  And _fuck_ , she wasn’t kidding.  


	4. The Beating of the Tell-Tale Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi continues to get nowhere with his case, and visits the Central Division to talk to Commander Schultz and his officers once again. The day passes slowly, and just as Levi is ready to call it a night, he gets a terrifying lead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own anything except the horrible brainchild that is this plot. 
> 
> Sorry that it's garbageeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
> 
> Also I demand more comments D:<

_15 July, Phoenix, AZ_

Clearly I was home last night to write my journal entry before bed, but I came dangerously close to waking up in Ilse’s.  I don’t want to admit how hard she made it to leave.

Same shit, different day: shake, gym, shower, eggs, tea, news.  

I tried and failed to pick up Dietrich’s trail before I tried and failed to pick up Brzenka’s.  Neither of them were hanging around their usual haunts, and it gives me the sick feeling that whatever I’ve been waiting for is about to happen.  I wanted to get plastered and break shit more than I have in a long time, but giving up wasn’t an option.

I went back to the hotel and resisted the urge to call Ilse.  I did tell her I was going to look further into the victim named Dennis though, so I went through my notes and left a message with Eld about the case.  What I really needed was to send him photos of the brand, but I didn’t have those yet, and at the very least he’d know I was trying to get his help.  

More importantly, I wanted to see if there was a way to confirm my gut feeling.  If Dietrich really did have a hand in the pet killings, it would get me one step closer to Titan, and it would be another nail in his coffin.  Against that slippery son of a bitch, we need all the ammo we can get.

I finally went down to the station once I felt like I had more than just breadcrumbs for Ilse’s case.  None of the information was very strong on its own, but it will at least lead her in a new direction, and if nothing else, Dennis isn’t nameless anymore.  That has to count for something.

Commander Schultz was joking around with a dispatcher when I walked into the lobby, and he greeted me with a broad smile.  “Ackerman, what a coincidence; I was about to call you in.  Langnar says you were able to provide some insight into her murders?”

I held up the stack of bullshit I put together for her.  “I might have a few ideas.”

“Great, great.  Well, come inside, and let’s talk about it.”  I followed him through the bullpen and past the break room to his office, where Ilse and a prissy-looking blond man were waiting.  “Agent Ackerman, you remember Detective Langnar, of course.”  He stood behind his desk and nodded to Ilse, who sat across from him and gave me a wink and a small wave.  Next, he gestured toward the blond man standing on the opposite side of the room from me.  “This is Lieutenant Bozado.”

That dumb fuck who hung up on me.  “Good to meet you in person, sir.”  I made a fuss about going over to shake his hand, just to rub it in his face that I know how to be a decent human being, and he’s a gaping asshole.

Bozado looked almost embarrassed.  “Y-yes, you as well, Agent.”  Clearly, he never thought he’d meet me face-to-face, and chummy with his superior, of all things.

“Now, Agent Ackerman,” Schultz explained, using his eyes to point to the empty seat beside Ilse, “the reason I wanted to have this little meeting is because Langnar says you’re looking into Ian Dietrich, right here in Phoenix.”

“That’s correct.”  I plopped myself down into the seat because he offered, but it was damn pretentious of him to stand and look down at me.

“Last known?”  He reminds me a lot of fucking Erwin.

“I have two safe house addresses for Er—Commander Smith.”  Erwin doesn’t like when I call him by his name in front of others.  I kind of don’t give a shit, but these two are friends, so I tried my best.  “He’ll decide how to proceed.  Other than that, the last time I had eyes on him was yesterday at the RV Salvage on 7th.”

Ilse cut in.  “RV Salvage?”  She raised her eyebrow so far it was part of her fucking hairline.

Officers act like they’re smarter than me all the time, but I’m usually more in the know than they could ever hope to be.  “Ever heard of the Hoover Camp?”  She shook her head.  I looked at the Lieutenant, who looked just as lost as Ilse.  

Luckily, Schultz knew.  “Criminal safe haven.  They roam around the country, playing cat-and-mouse with law enforcement.”  It would be worthless for me if they were all completely clueless.

“Yes.”  I wanted a cigarette.  “We already know that Brzenka uses it to push product and recruit for El Corazon.  My best guess is that Dietrich is either helping out the cause or planning an exit strategy.”

“Do you have any idea of where the camp is now?  Where we might be able to start a search if he makes it out?”

I shook my head.  “Erwin assigned a hunter to it.”  I crossed my legs.  “I mean, Commander Smith.”

Schultz sighed and put a hand on his chin.  “So, should we assume that there’s not much time left on catching Dietrich in Phoenix?”

I tilted my head to the side.  “Maybe.”

Bozado snorted.  “Some hunter you are.”

Fuck his rank.  “He’s been in your goddamn backyard for months and you didn’t have any clue.”  If he was going to act high and mighty, then he should actually be high and mighty.  “I’ve been tracking him for a week, and I stood three feet away from him on Saturday.”

“W-well, that’s—that’s—ack—”  Shithead bit his own tongue while talking.

I wanted to roll my eyes.  “Dietrich is almost definitely working on multiple ways to bolt when the time comes.  But he’s clearly been working on something big here, and I doubt he’d ghost before it happens.”  If he’s been sitting in Phoenix for long enough for us to get this close to him, then it’s big enough to be worth the risk.

Schultz nodded in agreement.  “What are your thoughts on what that is?”

“I don’t have a clear picture yet,” I lied.  Well, it’s not a complete lie.  I don’t have enough evidence to confidently share a theory.  But between the murdered pets and the Love Bug—which Furlan and Isabel wouldn’t be using for themselves in the least—and Dietrich’s visit to Jaeger, the picture is getting clearer.  Even after going over everything I have on him again this morning, I can’t say if Dietrich is a part of Titan.  But I won’t be surprised if I find concrete evidence he’s buying boys from them by the time I leave.  “But it’s gonna be soon.”

“How do you know it hasn’t happened yet?” Ilse asked.

At the same time as Commander Schultz replied, “With Dietrich, we always know,” I said, “Because he always leaves a fucking mess.”

She put her hands up defensively.  “Okay.  Sorry.”

Schultz crossed his arms.  “All right.  Well, Agent Ackerman, I’d appreciate it if you could keep us in the loop.  I can open an official channel with Commander Smith to make sure that getting involved won’t step on any toes.  In the meantime, we’ll be glad to offer you whatever assistance we can in your case.”  Bozado didn’t look pleased to hear it, but that cumrag can suck my dick.

I stood and outstretched my hand.  “Of course, sir.  Thank you.”

Schultz shook my hand and took his seat behind the desk.  “You’re excused.”  Bozado didn’t budge as Ilse and I very slowly made our way out of the office, enough to hear the Commander repeat, “You’re _all_ excused.”  I reveled in it when Bozado stomped away toward the break room, and Ilse ushered me over to her desk.  

She made a face at me, throwing herself down into her chair.  “Don’t tell me you’re _not_ connecting dots between Love Bug and dead pets,” she said.

“I’m not fucking stupid.  Of course I did.”  I handed her the folder I’d put together for her.  “That doesn’t mean I’m ready to connect Dietrich or Titan to them.  There’s this thing called _evidence_ ; don’t know if you’ve heard of it.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she huffed, waving one hand at me as she opened up the folder.  “I get it.  It would be dumb to get the Commander all worked up over something you can’t prove is there.”

“Yeah.”  I crossed my arms, leaning on the corner of her desk.  More than that, some of my suspicions are related to the fact that Dietrich fucked Jaeger, and I didn’t want to bring him up.  “About the brand.  I gave my friend a head’s up, so—”

“You have a friend?”  She had wore a tiny, coy smile.

I sighed.  “The guy in the FBI who could help you.  Eld Jinn.  I let him know that you’d be sending along the photos of the brand.  I left his information in there.”  I pointed to the stack.

She shrugged with just her hands.  “Somewhere in this mess there’s a guy’s email or something?”

“I can’t be completely sure, but it might be that series of letters with his name and that symbol that looks like an A or some shit.”  At first I was going to act as intermediate.  But that’s fucking annoying, and it’s better if I don’t have excuses to talk to Ilse.

“You’re just full of sunshine, aren’t you?”  She bit her lip.  “Any idea how long it will take?”

I cocked my head to the side.  “He’s good at getting back to people quickly, so however long the search takes, I guess.”

She relentlessly clicked the end of her pen.  “So, if we have that brand on record, he’ll know it?”

I nodded.  “He’s exclusively domestic sex trafficking.  So unless the brand is international—”

“Which it could be?”  She tended to get excited and blurt out whatever she wanted.

“Who knows?” I fucking hate being interrupted.  “If he can’t help, he’ll try to find you someone who can.”  I hopped up and sat fully on the end of her desk, and she slid her foot under mine with a smirk.  Bitch.  “Your fucking feet wouldn’t touch the floor from up here either.”

“Don’t be so hurt.”  She leaned all the way back in her chair and ran her foot up my leg.  “It’s cute that you’re a shorty.”

I raised an eyebrow for a split second.  “You wanna be that obvious?”

“Oh,” she snickered, “am I embarrassing you, _Levi_?”

“Once I’m done my case, I’m gone.  I don’t give a fuck.”  I shrugged.  “You gotta keep working here.”

She cupped both her hands around her mouth like a megaphone and spun around in her chair.  “Agent Ackerman gives _really_ good head!”  She announced like a used-car dealer with a new sale and a flailing, inflatable monstrosity.

The other officers in the room looked over at us, not sure if they should laugh, clearly trying to figure out if it was a joke or not.  I actually had to swallow down a chuckle.  “Thank you.”

She continued to laugh, yelling, “I had _five_ orgasms!”  She made finger guns at a detective passing by her desk.  “Tell your friends.”

“All you’re doing is making me look good.”  I really wanted a smoke.  “Now you’ll have competi—”

“Detective Langnar!”  Bozado marched over, his cat-piss face bright red.  “This sort of behavior is highly inappropriate.”

Ilse did _not_ have a poker face in the least.   She cleared her throat in an attempt to stop laughing, and it did nothing to help.  “Yes, sir.  Of course.  I apologize, Lieutenant.”

His eyes flickered between us as if he were trying to decide if we’d really fucked or not.  The very idea that anyone might go to bed with me must have made him feel faint.  He pisses me off, so the next time his eyes fell on me, I licked my lips with as much saliva as I could muster and as slowly as I could manage without losing my shit.  He looked so offended, you think he’d caught me balls-deep in his mom.  “Your personal lives shouldn’t be a subject of the bullpen,” he hissed, clearly shaken.  How dare I defile one of his detectives?

“I’ll keep my tongue to myself next time, Lieutenant,” I said in the straightest voice I could.  He spun on his heel and grumbled all the way back to his office.  Ilse was cracking up behind her hand.  I studied her for a second, and had to look away at the smile in her eyes.  I pulled the half-crushed pack out from my back pocket.  “Need a break?”

She nodded, still laughing, and pulled herself up out of the chair.  “Come on.”  I followed her out to the depressing patch of dirt and rocks and shriveled succulents they called a courtyard and handed her a cig.  I lit up first, and instead of using the lighter I offered, she leaned over and pressed the end of her smoke to mine, puffing on it until the end caught.  

“Five, huh?”  I squinted in the sun.  I hate this shitty-ass kind of weather.  “I counted four.”  It was hotter than a half-fucked fox in a forest fire.

“I guess you owe me one.”  She stood with her hand on her hip and gave me the strongest ‘fuck me’ eyes I’d ever seen.  “I’m free tonight.”

I stared at her for a moment, the cigarette hanging from my lips as I took a long drag.  She checks all my boxes.  I didn’t want to say no.  “Ilse…” I leaned back against a fence post.  “When I said one night, I meant it.”

“Oh, I—” Her lips parted and her eyebrows went up.  “I figured you just meant it wouldn’t be more than just sex.”

“I mean that too.”  I let my eyes wander away from her.  Ilse is funny, and sexy, and smart, and I could get along with her just fine.

“So, that’s it?  No more?”  I nodded just once, and she pouted.  “If you’re worried about me, it’s no problem.  I can do the whole fuck buddies thing.”

I can’t, though.  “I believe you.”  I could really fall for her.  “But I won’t change my mind.”  

She shrugged.  “Okay.”  We finished smoking in silence.

“All that stuff is copied,” I said, crossing my arms.

She nodded slowly.  “Okay.  I’ll contact your guy, then.”

I shoved my thumbs in my pockets.  “If you need anything else…”

“I’ll call.”  She looked down.

I threw my butt into the dirt and left.  That might be the last time I ever see her, and it leaves a sour taste in my mouth.  It's not that there's something special about Ilse, even though she’s exactly my type.  It's the same decision I make in every city with a maybe-in-another-life encounter.  It's that I might try to be happy. It's that any time I'm pissed or stressed or bored, I think, _I need a cigarette_.  And it's that I've trained myself to want a cigarette when I want to shoot up. But most of all, it's that I know I can’t fucking handle being left again. If I fall out of another relationship, I'll cash in my chip and chase the dragon with everything I've got.  And that’s how I’ll fucking die.

So, no. I haven't fallen for her in the three goddamn minutes we've known each other, and I'm under no impression that I could ever even make a long-distance relationship work. But I can't leave anything to chance. Not when it comes to my sobriety.

Which is the same damn reason why it irritates me that Jaeger’s on my mind all the time.  I’d like to hope that it’s a good thing, the fact that the brat hasn’t called.  But hope has always meant jack shit to me, and if Dietrich really is with Titan and has been murdering his pets, which is feeling more and more like the answer to me, then he and his associate aren’t finished with Jaeger yet.

And as fucking great as it would be for me to just be able to push the snot-nosed brat out of my mind, I _can’t_.  Sitting here in my room, wondering if the next brown haired boy Ilse finds will have green eyes and tan skin and no one to identify him—I would be absolutely over the damn moon if I rushed over and kicked down the door to that shitty motel right now to see him sweating under some sick shit-dick, legs spread and full of him.  Because as much as that thought makes my stomach turn, it would mean he’s not being tortured to death.  But I haven’t seen Dietrich in too long, and everything within me says that something’s _wrong_.

It doesn’t happen often, but in some moments, I feel helpless.

I especially feel that way at times like these, when it’s an obscene hour of the morning and I can’t sleep.  I can’t get used to it, even though things have been that way for most of my life.  I used to drive Petra absolutely nuts with reading in bed or putting on the news with the volume off and the captions on.  She was a really light sleeper and would yell for me to shut up or turn the lights out and go to sleep.  Or when we got the house and I used to paint in the spare room, she’d come in and ask when the hell I’d be coming to bed.  She complained that she couldn’t sleep when I wasn’t there, and I always teased the shit out her for it, but if we’re being honest, I also slept better when we were side by side.  Now I stare at the ceiling until I’m so goddamn exhausted that I just pass out.  It wasn’t happening tonight, and that’s why I’m writing now.  With any luck, I’ll have all this stupid Ilse and Dietrich and Jaeger bullshit off my mind for long enough to knock out.

And now my phone is fucking ringing.  And I have zero desire to answer it, but shit—what if it’s him?


	5. Stone Cold Sober

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi receives a phone call that sends him scrambling. He teams up with Ilse Langar once more to track down Dietrich and put an end to his activities in Phoenix.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still don't own AoT, go figure
> 
> I'm going on vacation so the next chapter of The Hunters will probably be late, which means the next chapter of this bullshit will likely be late
> 
> Also my Yuri on Ice fic will probably be late, deal with it but also please leave me love in the comments because I need it to survive

_16 July, Phoenix, AZ_

When Furlan, Isabel and I ran together out of our minds on horse, there was nothing that seemed like a bad idea.  Mugging, felony assault, armed robbery, grand theft auto—the only thing I didn’t do on H was murder someone, honestly—but this past night takes the whole motherfucking cake.  Hands down craziest shit I ever pulled, and I was stone cold sober.

It _was_ Jaeger on the phone, and thank the fucking Lord I picked up the phone for once.  If it had been anyone else, I wouldn’t have bothered.  I wasn’t even a little bit in the mood to talk to Erwin, or anyone else for that matter, but it was him.  I think he was trying to hide it, but it was clear he was in a bad way, telling me that Ian had picked him up and taken him somewhere and trying to give me shitty directions—

I hung up at the pitiful sound of his voice asking me to hurry.  “Shit!”  I stood up and screamed every obscenity I had in my repertoire; I flipped the table and threw a mug and kicked at the air.  If I hadn’t fucked that damn brat, none of this would have happened.  I wouldn’t have been distracted, I wouldn’t have lost Dietrich, and he would have been safe.

There were a lot of things I had to do if I was really going to try facing Dietrich.  I knew taking him head-on was a horrible idea, but I had to do what I could.  I had to save Jaeger.

“Erwin,” I yelled as soon as he picked up.

“Levi—what’s going on, why haven’t you—”

“I’m leaving everything to you and Petra, you know that?”

He paused.  “W-what?”

“You know that I owe you everything, right?”

He sighed.  “Levi, what are you doing?”

“You need to get down here.  I don’t have a plan yet, but—”

“Don’t worry, I’ll leave now.”  I heard him getting up from his office chair.  It made a distinct squeak whenever he moved around in it.  “But, please, tell me what you’re thinking.” I didn’t think much at the time, but now it’s surprising to me that he was still at the office.

“I’m...I’m going to get him.”  I can count on one hand the number of times in my life I have been afraid.  This was one of them.  “I’m taking Dietrich down.  It has to happen tonight.”

“I’ll be there in about two hours,” he replied.  He trusted me enough to go with whatever I said, and knew me well enough not to try and talk me out of it.

“Thank you,” I replied before hanging up the phone.  By the time he arrived, if I hadn’t been killed during recon, we could get something together with the local LEOs.  I still had to get a plan to do that, and for that I needed to figure out what was happening.  But, I couldn’t do it alone.  I had no idea what sort of situation I’d be walking into.  I needed a friend.

“Levi?”  Her voice was groggy.

“Are you home?”  I was already pulling my jacket on.

She giggled, her voice was thick with sleep.  “Changed your mind, ha—”

“Ilse.”  I hadn’t meant to sound as harsh as I did, but I had no time for her to be cute.  “Are you home?”

“Y-yes.”  

“I’m coming over.”  I hung up before she got a word in edgewise and banged on her door when I got there.

She swung it open and put her hand on her hip, standing there in only a Cardinals t-shirt and lacy panties.  “It’s past midnight, Ackerman, what the fuck—”

“I need your help.”  My hands trembled.  “Please.”

She blinked once and dragged me inside by the hand.  “Of course, get in here.”  She closed the door and leaned against it.  “What’s wrong?”

“I think it’s Dietrich.”

She furrowed her brow.  “What’s—”

“The pet murders.  I think it’s Dietrich.”

She crossed her arms.  “And how did you reach that conclusion?”

I didn’t want to tell her.  “Dietrich fucked a whore a few nights ago.  Young male, brown hair.”  I didn’t want to trust her with this.  “At first I didn’t think it meant much.  But now he’s missing.”  I didn’t want to need her at all.

“Okay, well, let’s not overreact.  How do you know—”

“He called me, Ilse, he—”  God, the sound of his weak, terrified voice on the phone made me crazy, echoing through my mind all over again.  “He gave me directions.  Does Mesa Grand mean anything to you?  Superstition and Val Vista?”

She nodded, beelining toward the dining table.  She sat in front of her laptop and pulled up a map.  “There’s a shopping center called Mesa Grand off Superstition Freeway.  As for Val Vista…” She dragged the map around and pointed to a spot.  “There’s an exit for South Val Vista Drive.”

“Okay.” I pulled the notes I’d scribbled down while on the phone out of my pocket and unfolded it, searching for the next step.  “Something about a church on the left.”

She bit her lip.  “There’s not one in the immediate area.” She searched for churches along the road, and seven came up.  I growled, and she put an hand on my forearm.  “It’s okay.  Let’s see—if they headed south, these churches are on the right.  So let’s check the north side...there are two up here on the left.”

I sighed, doing my best to stay calm.  Every second counted, but it wouldn’t help for me to act as crazy as I felt.  “Okay.  Pass eight streets to the right, then make two rights, and you should come up on a cul-de-sac.”  As she scrolled around the map looking for the cul-de-sac, I continued, “He also gave me a partial plate belonging to a red Dodge Charger.  I ran it, but of course Dietrich doesn’t have it in his own name, and none of the aliases matched.”

“I can’t access the database from my computer.  Do you have yours?  Are you able to pull it up?”

I nodded, pulling my laptop out of my bag and setting up beside her.  “Maybe an address will match?”

“That’s what I’m hoping.”  She zoomed in on an area of the map.  “Here, Hermosa Vista Flood.  It’s a neighborhood in Mesa, and all the houses are on cul-de-sacs, seven streets away from the first church on the left of Val Vista.  If you have to make two rights...maybe one of the streets off Lemon or Maple?  That narrows it down to ten circles.”

“There are two cars that might match registered in Mesa.  One on North Oracle and one on East Northridge.”

“Northridge!  Look!”  She zoomed in further.  “East Northridge Circle; that’s got to be the one.  Who’s it registered to?”

“Ivan Leonhart.  Not a known alias.”  I opened the GPS on my phone and started to type the address in.  “What other shit do you think we’ll find if we run that name?”

“I can only guess.” She stretched her arms straight up into the air.  “Let me get some pants, and we can get to the station.”  

I shut my laptop and shoved it back in my bag.  “Thank you, Ilse.”

She stood up with a broad grin.  “When a man bangs on my door crying in the middle of the night—”

“Who’s crying?”

“—I feel like I should help him.”  She reached her hand way up her shirt from the bottom and scratched her stomach, exposing all of her pretty, sheer underwear and a bit of underboob.

I brought my eyes to hers.  “Sorry for waking you.”

She shook her head and put her hands on her hips, her elbows facing back behind her.  “I was reading case files in bed again.”

“Hm.”  I was having a difficult time hiding my anxiety.  “You can get back to it, then,” I replied, turning on my heel.

She grabbed my arm.  “Hold up—where are you going without me?”

“East Northridge.  I’m going to see if the car is there.”  And break down Dietrich’s fucking door.

Her eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.  “What—no, hey, are you nuts?  We’re going down to the station to talk to Schultz about this first!”

I narrowed my eyes and cocked my head to the side.  “With what?  We don’t have any proof of anything.  We won’t get a warrant in time even if a judge would grant one.  If I’m saving that brat, I’m doing it _now_.”  I wrenched myself from her grasp and took another few strides to the door.  My patience was running thin—or rather, it was getting harder to swallow down my fear.

“I’m not letting you take on Dietrich alone, Levi—Levi!”  She literally jumped in front of me and put her back to the door, her arms outstretched as if that would make it any harder to throw her across the room.    

“Fine,” I snapped, deciding that throwing someone around their house wasn’t in my favor.  “Come on.”  I pulled her aside by the wrist and threw the door open.

“I’m not dressed, you ass—”

“You don’t need clothes.”  I had one foot out the door, and she had to literally pry my hand off of her with her free hand.  

“Hey!”  She glowered at me, her nostrils flaring, her lips in that same tiny pout that Petra used to make when she was close to crying.  Ilse clearly wasn’t expecting this side of me and looked entirely hurt, but what part about the fact that Jaeger might _die_ was she not fucking understanding?  “At least let me get my keys.”

I nodded curtly.  If we made it through this night, I’d apologize for my behavior, but until then, a kid’s life hung in the balance and I _wasn’t going to lose another_ —god fucking _damn it._  I watched as she ran for her keys, wallet, and phone, and slipped on a pair of flip flops she’d abandoned by the door.  “Ready?”

She nodded back at me the way I’d done to her.  That was fair, I guess.

I had the pedal on the floor for the entire drive.  Ilse looked a little green around the gills as we reached Hermosa Vista Flood, but I wasn’t going to slow down.  As we approached the last turn I realized that there was a gate, and more than that, an attendant.  “Fuck,” I spat, continuing down the road.

“Damn.  Of course, he lives in a gated community.”  Ilse spread her legs wide and threw one foot up on the dashboard, which I normally would have screamed at her for.  “What are the chances we can ask to visit Ivan Leonhart at this hour?”

I wanted to rip the steering wheel off, but settled for squeezing the shit out of it.  “He’s probably paying the guard to monitor visitors.  We need another option.”   _Fuck_.

She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.  “We need to think like burglars.  Family’s away, and it would be a good haul.  How do we score?”

“Go during the day as maintenance workers,” I responded immediately.  

She raised an eyebrow.  “Or in the middle of the night for an emergency?”

I scoffed.  “You got a spare plumber’s uniform lying around?”

“Do I look like Mario to you?”  She sat up fully and turned to look into the cargo area.  “You got anything back here?”

I scoffed.  “Nothing useful to that scenario.”

“We don’t have a convincing vehicle either.”  She rapped her knuckles against the door.  “I got it.”  She turned back to me and circled her hand toward herself.  “Punch me or something.”

“What?”

“I’m going to walk right up, crying with one shoe and all roughed up in my undies, saying I need to see my friend.  They won’t say no.”

“Fucking hell, Ilse.”  That was fucking brilliant.  “Not bad.”

She grinned.  “So?  Give me a fat lip.  Bite me.  Do something.”

I pulled over the car and turned to face her, thinking of how to make it look convincing.  “You ready?”  I unbuckled myself as she nodded.  “Get out of the car.”  I ran around to her side as she took a couple steps forward, and before she got the chance to turn and face me, I pushed her as hard as I could into the dirt.

“Christ, Levi,” she coughed, pushing herself back up with her hands and knees.  I dropped to my knees behind her and squeezed her thighs tight enough to make my hands hurt, digging my nails into her soft, warm skin.

“What else?”  I tried to make my tone of voice soft and made sure to keep as much of my body off her as I could.  I only wanted her to _look_ the part.  

I watched as she dug her nails into the dirt and rubbed some on her face.  “You just make it bruise,” she panted.  “I can fuck up my hair and knees.”

I tightened my grip so hard, my arms started to shake.  She made a quiet noise of pain.  “Should I stop?”

“A little longer,” she replied, her voice thick.  I counted to ten in my head and let go, standing up as swiftly as I could and reaching out a hand to help her up.  She stumbled once before coming all the way up, her eyes watering.  “Damn, Ackerman.”  She smiled, her lower lip stained with blood, and rubbed her knees with more dirt.  “Looks good?”

I ruffled her hair.  “They’re gonna call the fucking cops.”

She slipped off one sandal and handed it to me.  “I won’t let ‘em.”

“Should I drop you closer?”

“No, don’t let them see your car.  I’ll run for it.  It’ll be better if I’m out of breath.”  She patted my shoulder and made to leave, but I grabbed her wrist.

“If shit hits the fan?”

She just stared at me for a second.  “It won’t.”

“Ilse,” I growled.  Didn’t she have any fucking idea what Dietrich was capable of?  “You have your phone, right?”  She nodded.  “I’m gonna duct tape it to you.  You keep a call on to me so I can hear everything.  If I stop hearing you, or if you need me, I’ll come right there.”

“Should I be concerned that you just always have duct tape?”  She grinned, clearly covering her anxiety.

I can’t use humor to cover fear.  I usually resort to anger, or silence.  “That’s probably the least concerning thing about me,” I answered.  She stopped smiling.

We decided on a place to hide the phone and taped it up after she put the call through.  She ran out of earshot and checked in.  “Can you hear me?” she panted, her footfalls loud on the asphalt.

“Yeah.”  I sat behind the wheel with the engine running, ready to fetch her if it came to that.

“Okay.”

I lit a cigarette, because otherwise the stress was gonna fucking kill me.  “Mute me if you can reach it.”  

“Ten-four.”  I waited anxiously in silence for her to reach the gate.  Her pants turned into gasps and her footsteps became more erratic.  I heard an engine running in the background.

“M-miss?”  A man’s voice.  

“Please!  Please,” she sobbed, “my friend lives here, just let me in, please!”

A small pause passed.  “Lady, you gotta let me call—”

“No!” She shrieked, and it actually startled me.  “Please, _please_ , I just have to see Sarah.  I just want to be safe.”

The man sighed heavily, then mumbled something I didn’t catch.  I heard the car speed off.  “The police can—”

Ilse kept cutting him off, refusing anything other than being let in.  “If you won’t help me, I’m going.”  She must have started to run.

“Miss, wait—”

“ _Don’t touch me!_ ”  There was a bit of scuffling, and I debated going over there.

“I’m sorry, okay, I’m sorry!”  The guard apparently hadn’t meant any harm.  “Go ahead in.  See your friend.  Do you want a ride?”

“Get away.”  She paused.  “I’m fine on my own.”  A few more silent moments passed.  When I heard Ilse sigh loudly, I did the same, not realizing I’d been holding my breath.  “Approaching Leonhart’s place now.”

“Good job.”  I didn’t know if she’d really muted me or not.

“Levi—there’s a red Charger here.”  I heard her running again.  “035-OSB.  That’s the one.”  I heard her shuffling again.  “Not much obvious activity, most of the lights are off—shit.”  She was breathing heavily.  “There’s a guard.”  I turned my headlights off and started to drive toward her.  “Make that two,” she continued.  If I had to break down the gate and fuck it up, I would.  

“Ilse, get out of there.”  I didn’t want to say something that got her noticed, but if she was as stubborn as she seemed, she was going to ignore the risk and get close.

“I’m going in.”

“Fucking—god _damn_ it.”  I was sure at the point she’d muted me.

She chuckled, “You’re probably shitting a brick by now, right?”  I heard a lot of rustling, and then things were silent for a while.  Seconds.  Minutes.  I got as close to the gate as I dared.  I got to my third cigarette before I heard any more sounds, and it was another minute before I heard her voice again.  “I’m going to jump the fence to the south and double back to you.”  

“Christ.”  I’d been sweating fucking bullets the entire time.  I made a u-turn and drove back toward her, listening to her ripping the tape off.

“Levi?”

“On my way.”

“Okay.”  I met up with her not too long after, and she jumped in the car, soaked in sweat.  “The real guard is the one at the gate.  He was attending a car when I arrived, talking to some driver and holding onto this list.  When I interrupted them, he handed a red envelope to the driver.  I saw that car parked with the charger.  While I was keeping an eye on the house, two people arrived, all dressed up in like...some Victorian shit, and another in a trench coat.  The guard at the door took a red envelope from one of them before letting them inside.”

Shit.  “Sounds like a pet party.”

Her head rolled toward me, her shoulders slumped all the way forward.  “God, really?”

I could only nod.  My mouth was sour.  “I need a costume to get in there.”  Among other things.

“Hey, wait—we need to go see the Commander first.  We need to make a plan.”

“For Dietrich, yeah, but to save Jaeger, there’s no time.”

“Levi, we can do _both_.”

“Fuck Dietrich; if Jaeger dies—” I stopped, surprised at myself.  Somehow that brat felt more important than revenge.

“We’re gonna get him.”  Ilse put a hand on my arm and gave me a fierce look.  “But we need to be smart.”

I growled and squeezed the steering wheel.  “Fucking fine.  We can go, but I’m not wasting a damn second on getting into that party, and you can’t walk into the station with your cunt out.”

She looked down and laughed, as if she’d forgotten.  “Shit.  Okay, yeah.  Look, I think I know where you can get something suitable at this time of night to get into that party.  Lieutenant Bozado is in community theater, and they did Phantom recently.”

I rolled my eyes all the way into the back of my head.  “ _Perfect_.”

“Beggars can’t be choosers.”  She was just tickled fucking pink.

“You’re right.”  I didn’t have time to argue; I handed her my phone.  “Set the course.”  We raced over to Bozado’s place, which ended up looking exactly like I expected it to, and I made a beeline for his door.

“Wait, Levi—I don’t have fucking pants on—wait!”  She had to physically stop me again.  “Calm down; Jesus.  Do you have any extra clothes with you?”

I sighed and turned back to the van.  “Usually,” I grunted, throwing open the door and finding my work bag.  I always keep a couple of toiletries and a change of clothes for times when I get separated from my duffel, and that has saved me more than once.  “It’s just sweats,” I told her.

“That’s fine.”  She pulled on my sweatpants before whipping her shirt off and tossing it into the car.  I found some tissues for her to clean her face up with, and she combed through the worst of her hair with her fingers. “Better?” she asked, straightening the hem of my black t-shirt with a coy smile, fully aware of how goddamn adorable she looked in the baggy clothing.

“Let’s go,” I replied with a nod.  I was about to bang down his door in the same way I’d done to Ilse when she grabbed my arm for the millionth time.

“Ah—let me.  He’ll respond better to seeing _my_ face in the peephole.”  I begrudgingly stepped aside and let her knock on the door.  I made it painfully clear through gestures just how impatiently I was waiting, and she rolled her eyes before knocking again, this time with the right kind of urgency.

Lieutenant Bozado answered the door with a much sweeter tone than I’d expected for two in the morning.  “Yes?  Detective?”  There was a slight hesitation I think signaled his debate on calling her Ilse before settling for her title. Probably hoping she needed to come in and be comforted.

“Lieutenant, thank God—” She even put her little prayer hands together in trembling-female-gratitude.  “Can we come in for a moment?”  I’d bet anything she was giving him the prettiest doe eyes.

“We?”  He opened the door wider, and I couldn’t help but give him a smirk.  It was too good to be true that a woman like Ilse would show up on his doorstep, wet and ready.  Instead, he could have me.  He cleared his throat and straightened up, and when he spoke, his expression was cold.  “Ah.  Agent Ackerman.”

I licked my lips before responding, just to give him the gift of imagining my face between his beloved detective’s legs one more time.  He looked like he might yark.  “We need to strike on Dietrich tonight.  We’re going to the station to brief Commander Schultz, and Commander Smith should be arriving soon from Las Vegas.”

He perked right up at the thought of the glory this case might bring him.  Or some shit; I’m no mind reader.  “I’ll get my things.”

“Wait,” Ilse interjected, “before that, we need your help.  So, can we come in for a moment?”

Bozado’s eyes flickered between us, and it took everything within me not to scream, because _don’t they know that Jaeger could die at any fucking second_?  Finally, he stepped aside and gave an affirmative answer.  “What’s the situation?”

Ilse started to answer, but I cut her off, folding my arms and trying to suppress my anger because I didn’t have time for her to be cute and get what she wanted.  “Dietrich is hosting a pet party.  The house is under his alias and his car is there, but we didn’t actually get eyes on him and don’t have any idea of the numbers of targets and vics.”

“And what am _I_ supposed to do?”  He looked skeptical.

Fucking _Christ_ , how he became a lieutenant was beyond me.  “I’m responsible for recon only.  I don’t have any actual authority or access to manpower, so I need you two to gather resources and execute a takedown.”

He sighed, seemingly angry that I wasn’t a complete idiot like him.  “What do you need for recon, then?  I assume that’s why you’re here with me and not out surveilling him.”

That was the first smart thing he’d said to me.  “We did all we could from the outside.  I need a costume to get into the party and get more information for you.”

Ilse spoke up.  “Do you still have the Phantom costume from your play?”

His eyebrows raised.  “I-I do,” he muttered.  “Let me go find it.”  He got up and sauntered off into another room.

“Slow as he fucking can,” I grumbled, “as if we have all the time in the _goddamn world_!”

Ilse shushed me, rubbing my arms and shoulders.  “We’re gonna get him.  Getting high strung isn’t going to help.  You need a clear head to be safe and come up with something.”  I sighed and clenched my jaw, but didn’t say anything else.  She kept rubbing my arms to soothe me until Bozado came back, making that same prissy face at the sight of us being close.

“Here it is.”  He held it out as if to show me, but I didn’t care to see it.  

I took it impatiently and headed for the door.  “Let’s get going to the station and team up with the commanders.”

“I’ll be right behind you,” Bozado replied.

I didn’t care much about that either.  Ilse nodded and thanked him.  “I’ll call Commander Schultz and let him know we’re on the way.”

When we got to the van, I tossed the Lieutenant’s costume into the back, threw it into gear, and sped toward Central.  Ilse was explaining to Schultz that we were coming with an important development about Dietrich, Bozado would be there soon, and Commander Smith would be arriving shortly to meet us.  After she hung up, she took my hand and held it the entire way there, pressing hard into my hand with her thumb.  In a strange way, it helped to keep me calm enough to deal with things at the station, because it wouldn’t do us any damn good if I kept flipping shit.

We went straight into Schultz’s office, where he and Erwin were waiting for us.  They both used their most authoritative voices to greet us, Schultz with “Agent Ackerman” and Erwin with “Levi.”  It made for an awkward pause I could take advantage of.  I was sick of wasting time.  “Dietrich is having a pet party.  With Brzenka moving Love Bug around, I think this may have been what he stayed around so long for.  This is what he was gearing up for.”

Erwin responded first.  “You think he risked capture to get his rocks off?”

“I think to him, whatever motivation is behind this is worth it.  Ilse—”  Fuck.  “—Detective Langnar has been looking into pet murders that might be Dietrich’s doing, and one of those victims was sold off by Titan in Twin Falls.  I’m thinking this isn’t _just_ a pet party.”

“Titan sale?”  He sounded unsure, which was unlike him.

I shook my head.  “I wouldn’t go that far.  Making friends.”

He put a hand on his chin.  “Looking into expansion.”

I plopped into a chair and crossed one leg over the other.  “It’s the only place his enterprise doesn’t already reach.”  I’m getting too old to have an adrenaline rush for so long.

Schultz jumped in.  “How can my department help?  What’s the situation?”

Ilse replied for me.  “He’s got a house in Mesa and a red Charger, both under the name Ivan Leonhardt.  We tracked the car to the house and saw guests arriving, but didn’t move closer.  He’s got some ki—”

I cut her off.  “We don’t have any numbers, and there’s no way to estimate.  Owners might be bringing multiple pets, and if Titan is showing off, they could have brought a lot of bodies.”  It was one thing for me to tell Ilse about Jaeger, but I wasn’t going to let Erwin find out.  He’d ask the wrong sorts of questions.  I ignored the look she shot me and kept talking.  “I have a disguise ready to go.”

Erwin’s voice was warning, borderline panicked.  “Levi—”

“Sir,” I stood, holding back every inch of how much I fucking _hate_ acting like this, “I’m requesting permission to go undercover.”

He looked at me and laughed incredulously.  “That’s why you called to say those things.”

I clenched my fists and ignored the nosy-ass looks from Ilse and Schultz.  Mind your own damn business.  “Please.  While I’m gone, you can make whatever decisions you need to on how to proceed with a raid.  I can report numbers back to you and make sure Dietrich doesn’t slip away.”

Erwin didn’t seem happy, or even angry for that matter.  “Is that how much you want this?” he asked quietly.   _Ugh_ , his voice was full of fucking pity.   “Risking your life for revenge?”

I couldn’t tell him it wasn’t for me.  “ _Please,_ ” I repeated.  It was for that goddamn brat doing whatever it took to survive, only to end up this close to losing it all.

He sighed.  “Granted.  Let’s get you wired up first.  Commander Schultz, do you have equipment we could use?”

“They’re checking,” Ilse said, shaking her head.  “You can’t have a cell on you either.”

God, of course.  “I’ll just have to go without it,” I said.

“How will you get back to us?” Schultz asked.

“I’ll figure it out.”  Schultz didn’t look like he trusted me, but Erwin definitely did.  “I always do.”

“Okay, Levi,” Erwin nodded, “get going.”

I moved for the door when Ilse stopped me.  “Do you want backup?” She said it quietly, like it was just for me, despite the others in the room.

I patted her hand impatiently, pretending to reassure her.  To be honest, there was nothing safe or sure about this at all.  “I’m good.”  Besides, if she came, I’d have nowhere to hide Jaeger.  Speaking of which—fuck, that suicidal brat hasn’t come out the bath yet—I’ll finish this later.


	6. Dark Horse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi convinces Erwin to go with his plan of infiltrating the pet party. He searches for Eren and has to deal with the aftermath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I own AoT yet? Nope.
> 
> I'm updating a day early because I was a week late :D I'm sorry
> 
> Please leave me lovely comments! Thanks for your support <3

_16 July, Phoenix, AZ_

I stood in the parking lot, ripping my clothes off and putting on the fucking abomination Bozado had given me when Ilse ran up to me, her sandals making that horrible sound against the pavement.  “Levi, the guard—he won’t give you an envelope if you’re not on that list.”

I hurriedly buttoned the line up my chest.  “Did you get any look of it?”

She nodded.  “Cities.  Twin Falls was on there, but I don’t really remember what else.”

Maybe Titan sites?  “I’ll figure something out.”  As I moved to slip the green vest over my arms, she reached for the middle of my white shirt.

“You missed one,” she said, doing my button.  “So…” She casually continued with the buttons on my vest.  “Why didn’t you tell Commander Smith about the kid?”  

I gave her a strong look.  “It shouldn’t matter.  He’s not the only victim there.”

She adjusted my collar and fiddled with the cravat around my neck.  For the first time ever, she refused to look me in the eyes.  “He’s the only one you care about, though.”

I rolled my eyes, swatting her hands away and pulling on the black suit jacket.  “He’s the only one I promised to keep safe.”

Ilse made a face like she wanted to say more, but she didn’t, and thank fuck for that.  “If you don’t make contact within an hour, we’re heading straight there and doing what we need to.”

I gave her a short nod and slammed the doors shut, hopped behind the wheel, and raced back to Dietrich’s.  As expected, the guard stopped me at the gate.  “Can I help you?”  He scrutinized my suit.

“I’m here for Ivan Leonhardt.”

His eyes narrowed.  “Visiting a bit late, aren’t you?”

“Traffic can be a bitch.”

He nodded, clearly not entirely convinced, and grabbed a clipboard.  “And where are you visiting from, sir?”

During my drive, I thought of a city that couldn’t fail.  “Las Cruces.”

His eyebrows told me that I made the right choice, and he scanned the list.  “Thank you sir.  Still two in your party?”

“Just one.”  He looked at me warily, like I’d done one too many suspect things.  “Accidents happen,” I shrugged.

He nodded slowly and handed me the red envelope.  “Here you go, sir.  Second right.”

“Thanks.”  I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to open it or not, so I left it alone and made my way to the house.  I saw the red charger like Ilse had described and stuffed the discarded clothing from the back into a brown grocery bag.  I doubted Jaeger was wearing anything at that point, and he’d probably feel better if I didn’t cart him around like that.  

My next problem was needing to sneak my phone and gun in.  A guard smoked near the front door, so it wasn’t likely that I could deposit them somewhere.  No, I’d have to take him out and get back to my car if it came to that.  The other option was finding a phone somewhere after getting in.  It would be easy enough to pick someone’s pocket, but presumably no one else had a phone, and it still left me without a gun.  I didn’t plan on using it, but I wasn’t going to walk into Ian fucking Dietrich’s house without one.  I settled for leaving the gun and phone on the passenger seat.  I’d take whatever opportunity to grab them that I could find.  

The door guard looked up as I approached pointed me to the fence around the side with his chin, making two knocking motions with the hand that didn’t hold a cigarette.  The smoke wafted by my nose, and it smells like shit, but, _God,_ I wanted one of my own.  Or eight.

I made my way to the gate and knocked twice; it opened, and another guard took my envelope.  He seemed satisfied with whatever was inside, searched me and my bag—with a raised eyebrow, but said nothing—and let me past, where some blonde girl bowed.  She showed very little expression, and was surprisingly just dressed in a t-shirt and jean shorts.  “Welcome, sir.  Please, follow me.”  She opened a door on the side of the house to reveal a staircase going down, where I could already see the lights and hear the music. _Jesus_ , my stomach turned.  “Would you like to see Mr. Leonhardt before you enjoy your time?”

“Could I use a restroom first?”  When she looked back at me, I added, “Long drive.”  She seemed to hesitate before leading me around the corner through a large room.  My palms were sweaty with anger and anxiety.  Grab Jaeger, grab Dietrich, get out.  I started taking a head count, but I could tell that the basement had multiple rooms, and people were probably in all of them.  

It didn’t take long to reach a second staircase leading to the kitchen.  She turned another corner and gestured with her left hand.  “It’s there.  Then I’ll take you back down to see Mr. Leonhardt.”

If we were in the part of the house I thought we were, I’d find the small window I saw from the outside, typical of a bathroom.  “Thank you.”  I went in, locked the door, and threw that ridiculous cloak on the floor.  I was right about the window, and climbed onto the countertop.  I turned on the faucet just in case blondie was listening before squeezing myself through the window, which was a lot fucking smaller than I’d anticipated, and dropped to the ground outside.  I crept along the side of the house to the front, where the guy on the door still blew puffs of smoke.  My options were to blitzkrieg and hope I could tackle him before he moved on me, or get him to come to me and take him by surprise.  Option one was annoying, and the noise could potentially attract the other guard.  Option two was a little harder, but I figured might as well go all out.  Using the same bushes Ilse probably hid in as cover, I got in a position to flank him when he came over to investigate and shook a branch to get his attention.  He didn’t budge, and I rolled my eyes.  “Come the fuck _on_ ,” I griped under my breath.  I shook it a bit harder and snapped a twig.  That got him to look over, and after a pause he started to come around the side.  I stuck as close to the wall of the house as I could and waited for him to get as close as I dared.  I saw the look of realization on his face a split second before I pulled his legs out from under him, and he dropped like a ragdoll.  Before he could fight back too much, I jumped on his back and squeezed my elbow around his neck.  He fought like hell, and my muscles were screaming, but he finally stopped clawing at me and fell limp.  

I got to my feet, panting, and pushed his body into the bushes.  I ran to the car, opening the door and grabbing my shit as quietly as possible.  Of course the costume had no fucking pockets, so when I got to the window, I made sure the safety was on and shoved the gun into my waistband.  I put my phone in my mouth and jumped to reach the window frame, heaving myself up and pushing up on the wall with my feet to get myself in halfway.  I shimmied through the rest of the way, grabbing the counter for support, and put my boots gingerly down onto the tile floor.  I took another few seconds to better hide my phone and weapon, put on the cloak, and try not to look like I ran a goddamn marathon before opening the door to the blonde girl.

She stood there with her arms crossed and stared at me, but if something bothered her, she didn’t care enough to act on it.  “Ready?  This way.”  She lead me back down into the basement, and we weaved through the rutting masses to a room I hadn’t seen yet.

Dietrich was sitting on a couch, and his face lit up when we entered.  He stood and staggered toward us—rather, me.  Blondie hadn’t stuck around.  “Welcome!” Dietrich slurred, suddenly putting one of his chicken shit noodle arms on me.  “As you can see, we’ve started, but,” he paused to hiccough, “that just means these holes are all ready to go.”  When he smiled, his teeth glowed in the blacklight.

It took everything in me not to break his arm.  “Impressive, how many of us you’ve gathered here.”  Maybe he’d just tell me how many people came.

Dietrich laughed.  “It’s Pixis’ doing.  You all seem to rally behind your leader.  I like that very much.”  He sniffed and rubbed his nose and leaned on the wall.  He was completely blitzed.  “Don’t I know you?”

I shrugged easily.  “We fucked the same slut.”

He cocked his head to the side before his face slowly lit up.  “Oh, of _course_!  Here, let me tell you a secret—”  He put his arm around my neck again and leaned into my ear. “I’ve made him my pet.  He’s a little used up today, but that’s normal, right?”  He slapped my shoulder, and I had to literally swallow a scream.  “Want to take a turn?”

 _Fucking pig shit mother—_ god, I have never wanted to hurt someone like I wanted to hurt him. “What a kind offer.”

He waved his hand lazily toward the other end of the room.  “He’s over there someplace, so feel free to—”

“I was hoping I could take him somewhere a little more private, if you don’t mind.  All of this…”  I drew a circle with my finger.  “..doesn’t really do it for me.”

“I see,” he nodded slowly.  “Yeah, yeah, okay.  Why don’t you head on over to the bar to take some nerves off while I get him someplace quiet for you?”

“Could you have him wear this?”  I handed him the paper bag, and he nodded and hummed yesses as he staggered away.  Mostly to look the part, but also because I thought I might handle this better with a drink, I headed toward the bar he’d pointed out, pushing away a pet interested in servicing me along the way.  Get Jaeger, get Dietrich, get out.  Simple as that.  I grabbed the first bottle of dark liquor I could reach and dumped a double into one of the very traditional Solo cups stacked nearby.  Some freak older than dinosaur shit raised his cup at me, so I did the same before knocking it back.  I’d hoped it wasn’t spiced fucking rum, but it was, and it tasted goddamn horrible.  I set the cup down and turned my back from Pops to survey the room again.

I wouldn’t ever call myself anything close to innocent, but this was about as obscene as it could get.  I wanted to shower, and then maybe once more for good measure.  My mouth was sour at the thought of what Jaeger was going through.  I turned back to the bar and reached for another mystery bottle.  Under the counter, I pulled out my phone and sent a quick text to Erwin about my estimated numbers, then downed another shot—probably two—of what was thankfully whiskey this time.  Cheap as shit, but whiskey all the same.  

I turned back to face the room, and Dietrich had reappeared.  “He’s ready for ya,” he drooled, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.  I nodded and followed him through the basement, my heart pounding faster and faster with every step we took.  I was finally going to see him.  I had no idea what sort of state he’d be in, and it terrified me, but at least I’d _know_.  By the time Dietrich opened the door, I felt like screaming.

But one look at Jaeger, and a wave of relief washed over me.  Jaeger looked fucking _exhausted_ , like even standing was a chore, but it was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen, because he was fucking _alive._

“Good evening, sir,” he bowed, and it made me angry all over again.  “How can I service you?”

I watched as Dietrich patted him on the head, and my hand instinctively reached for where I hid my Sig.  Whenever I got the chance, I’d rip his throat out.  “Yes, sir,” Jaeger said in response to whatever that prick said.  Dietrich turned back to me and slapped me on the shoulder for the last fucking time, as if we were friendly.  I wrinkled my nose in disgust as he told me, “He’s all yours.”

I glared at him hatefully, drawing my weapon.  “Actually, you should stay,” I spat, taking advantage of his leaning down to pistol-whip him.  He fell to the floor, and I looked over at Jaeger, who stepped closer as I shoved the gun back into my waistband.

“Remind me not to get on your bad side,” he smiled.  I went to him, stepping square on that asshat’s chest as I approached and grimaced at the bandage on his face.  When I touched it with my fingertips, he leaned into the touch and told me it was nothing.  I had a feeling that for the wound I could see, there were plenty more hiding under his clothes.  I moved back a step to survey him.

“The fuck happened to you?”  That was a dumb-ass question.  “Why can’t you talk like a human being?”  Also a stupid question, because I knew it the second I looked him in the eyes.  High as a damn kite.  “What are you on?  What did they give you?”

He smiled and put his arms around me.  “Corporal, I’m so happy to see you.”  He pulled me close and started to kiss at my jawline.  “I knew you would come.  I knew it.”

 _Great,_ I thought angrily, _now I get to deal with this shit-faced brat._ “Jaeger, get it together.  Find your shit and get in my van before the goddamn police get here.”  

As I pushed him away, he winced in pain again.  “Corporal, it hurts.”

“What hurts?  Can you get upstairs?”  I summoned every last bit of patience I had, but it still wasn’t enough.  “What did this shitbag do to you?”  I started to pull on his shirt, but he slapped my hands away.

“I can do it.”  Suddenly, his entire demeanor had changed.  “Let me go.”

I sent a glare his way.  “Jaeger, show me.”  It was better that he didn’t, but I couldn’t stop myself from asking.  It made me twisted up and anxious.

“No.”  The fact that he didn’t want to show me made me think the worst.

I reached for his shirt again, but he avoided me.  “Fucking show me!”  It was the closest to hysterical I’ve been in a _very_ long time.

He laughed deliriously.  “Corporal, are you trying to do dirty things to me?”  God, he was _fucked_.  “I like you.  You don’t have to force me,” he slurred, his lips crashing down onto mine.  He forced his tongue into my mouth, and he tasted like metal and salt and blood.  I pushed him away again.  It was fucking disgusting.

“When did you get a piercing?”

He laughed again.  “Did you like it?”  He stumbled toward me, adding, “do you know where it would feel really good?”

I grabbed his shoulders to keep him from falling onto me, and he made another sound of pain that almost made me be kind.  “Jaeger, can you make it upstairs by yourself?  This is important.”

“If I put your dick in my mouth,” he continued, ignoring me completely.  “Corporal, let’s do it.  Right now.  I wanna fuck you.”

If I had screamed each time I felt like it that night, I would have lost my voice by this point.  "Christ, you shitty brat—if you don’t want to get mixed up in this, then get the _fuck_ upstairs."

He slurred his next sentence so bad, I didn’t understand it.  “Aren't they really pretty?" He looked sick. "I feel really hot. Okay, I'm going. Gonna get some water."

"Get to the _fucking van_ , brat."  At that point, I had zero patience left.

He stumbled toward the door.  "Yeah, I know. You said it was important."  At least he’d heard that part.  He finally left the room, and I almost dropped to the floor in—relief?  Anxiety?  Both?  Whatever; I couldn’t afford to pause for breath or think about how deep a shithole that brat had fallen into.  I had to figure out how in the hell I was going to get the fucking body out of the room.  Dragging the host’s body so clearly around his party wouldn’t do any good.  I gave the room a quick scan; it was all kinky toys and bondage gear, so surely there had to be _something_.  I got lucky enough rifling around and finding a gimp suit—although, honestly, it really wasn’t _that_ fucking lucky, because I had to squeeze that fatass sausage into this rubber tube.  

Jesus, he was heavier than any fiend deserves to be, but I managed to haul him up onto my shoulder and carry him out.  The very few people who bothered to pay attention to me only glanced curiously—too high or drunk or busy fucking to care.  With Dietrich all dressed up, it didn’t look like anything worse than what normally went on at these godforsaken things.  

The moment I reached the top of the staircase, I dumped him on the floor to check my phone.  As much as I wanted to take a moment to just breathe, Erwin and the others were on their way, and I couldn’t spare the time.  I grabbed Dietrich under the armpits and heaved him toward the door.  It was goddamn annoying, his stupid suit catching on the floor until I pulled him through a puddle on the floor.  He slid easily this time, faster than I could keep up with, and I fell right onto my ass.

I growled, standing up, and returned to the body, pulling him by the arms without a care as to the possibility of pulling them right out of their sockets.  “The fuck is this wet bullshit,” I grumbled.  “Whatever puddle of who-the-shit-knows-what.”

Jaeger appeared from a hallway to the side with the blonde girl who’d been playing guide, asking about the gimp suit.  I explained myself impatiently, throwing Dietrich’s arms down, his head hitting the floor with a satisfying thud.  God, that felt good.  But what the fuck was he waiting for?  “Why aren’t you outside yet?”

He pointed weakly at the girl. "Can I bring her? She's special to me."

“Fucking—” Dealing with this brat is fucking _trying_.  I didn’t give a rat’s ass what he did if it meant he was safe.  I breathed in sharply through my nose and cocked my head to the side to keep from flipping my shit.  “Just _go_ , dumbass."

"Okay."

Those two headed for the front door, and I stopped him with an “Oi,” pulling off the cloak.  “Gimme my jacket.  Can't be seen in this getup," I added, grabbing a fistful of the cravat and ripping it off with a tug.  We switched clothes, and he headed out the door with the girl.  I wanted to care about how strange it was that they had anything to do with each other, but it mattered more that he was gone by the time Erwin showed up.  All that was left to do was wait for the cavalry to arrive.  I kicked Dietrich’s body out the front door and shut it behind me, sitting on his back and puffing away like the guard I’d knocked out earlier.

They stopped sounding the sirens somewhere around the gate but kept the lights flashing as they entered the cul-de-sac.  I flicked away what remained of my cigarette and stood up, flagging down Erwin, whose blue Crown Vic led the pack of squad cars.

The lights must have alerted the guard on the gate, because it burst open, and he came out running.  I’d forgotten all about him, and lucky that he was trying to save himself rather than running down to clear out the party.  As I charged toward him, Erwin stopped short and flung open the car door to flank him, pushing him in a direction that made it easy for me to tackle him.  He clawed his way back up off the ground and threw a punch I just barely dodged.  I took ahold of his arm as he swung it back for a second attempt and twisted it so that I could pin him to the side of the house while Erwin cuffed his hands.  

“Great, now we have two sacks of shit,” I spat angrily.

“It’s fine,” Erwin replied, holding the squirming prisoner and waving toward the squad cars.  “I’ll get him to a patrol car.”  A uni came running up toward us.  “We’ll secure Dietrich first, then move in for the others.”

“Okay.”  I plopped myself right back down onto Dietrich’s body.  “Secured.”

“Levi,” Erwin chuckled, shaking his head as he handed the guard off to the officer.

I shrugged.  “He doesn’t care.”

“Come on, get up.  Let’s get him to—wait, whose body is _that_?”  

I turned to where I’d thrown that other guy into the bushes.  “The other guard.” I shrugged.  “He didn’t require finesse.”

Erwin moved his head from side to side.  “Fair’s fair.”  He tapped me on the shoulder.  “Let’s get this show on the road.”

“Sure.” I stood back up, pulling Dietrich up with me.  “Same as always?  I’ll babysit while you and the _real_ lawmen handle the fun stuff.”

He put his hands on his hips.  “Commander Schultz would probably welcome you, to be honest.  But someone _does_ need to be with the prisoners.”

I shook my head.  “I don’t know the plan anyway.  It is what it is.”  That’s what it means to be a hunter.

So, while they raided the place, I sat on the hood of someone’s squad car with Dietrich locked up in the back, blazing through a pack of cigarettes, watching the others run in and out of the house, rounding everyone up into vans.  

Ilse came up to me not long after things started to slow down, bouncing on the balls of her feet and rubbing her hands together.  She wore a tiny smile and used a cutesy voice.  “Ciggy?”  I rolled my whole head over to look at her and held out the one I’d just lit.  “You sure?”  She took it, but didn’t put it to her mouth.

I nodded.  “Probably gave myself cancer in only the last hour.”

She gave one dark chuckle as she took a drag.  “They cleared the house, so we’ll be heading back to the station soon.  Gotta sort all this shit out somehow.  Commander Schultz is going to stay here and wait for forensics and the coroner.”  She shoved one hand into the pocket of my sweatpants and tried to hide a shiver.

I stood up and took my jacket off.  “Coroner?”  

She nodded, the cigarette hanging from her lips as she accepted my jacket and folded her arms in.  “Looks like someone had too much of a good time.”  Judging from her pitiless tone, it was more likely an owner.  “You know what I found in the master?”

“Regale me.”  I leaned back onto the car.  

Her tone was smug.  “A branding iron with the heart symbol.”

I tried not to give away how that made me feel.  In the back of my head, I’ve known it was Dietrich all along.  I was the one who fucking connected the dots.  But for Jaeger’s sake, I had wanted more than anything to be wrong.  “Is that so?”  My voice shook.  I cleared my throat to try and over it.

“Mm,” she nodded slowly.  “Chains and a knife and blood on the bed sheets.  A lot of evidence.”  She leaned in close to me.  “But, you know what we haven't found yet?”

Of course I did.  “Pray tell.”

“The pet with corresponding injuries.”  She held the cigarette near my face, and I used the opportunity to take it back from her.

“Interesting.”  I put my lips around the filter and breathed deep.

“Levi.”  She hissed into my ear as if that would do anything.  “There’s tons of physical evidence.”

I put my face close to hers and looked into her eyes.  “Too bad you can’t find the victim.”  

The emotion in her eyes changed completely.  The ferocious look she had was gone.  “Don’t you want justice for him?”

I didn’t get to answer before Erwin interrupted us.  “Detective Langnar, Lieutenant Bozado is excusing you for the night.  Go home and get some rest.”  It was probably for the best, since I had it up to my goddamn eyeballs with holding back.

“Thank you, sir.” she replied, taking a step away from me.  It didn’t matter; Erwin knew everything he needed to know about us the moment he met her.

Erwin had his hands on his hips.  “You too, Levi.  We’ll take care of things from here.”

I nodded and took hold of my jacket by the collar before pulling it down off Ilse’s arms.  She looked startled, but she didn’t stop me from taking it, asking,  “Could I get a ride?”

I scoffed.  “No.”  She knew exactly what she was doing, asking me in front of Erwin.  “Sorry.”

She leaned her head to the side innocently.  “How will I return your clothes?”

I beelined for the van.  “Keep ‘em.”  Even more than before, it’s better if we don’t see each other again.  I reached the car without her trying anything else and didn’t wait a moment before driving off.  “You back there?” I called out.

“Yes.”  The girl.  “Eren’s asleep.”

In the rearview mirror, I could see Jaeger—Eren? leaning onto the girl sitting in his lap, his face pressed against her chest.  “Get up here.”

She did as I said, not taking any special care of the brat besides making sure his head didn’t slam on the floor.  She came through the opening between the seats and slouched into the chair, taking up as much space with her legs as possible.  “You can leave me anywhere.  I’ll figure it out.”

There were only two places I’d consider taking her.  “What were you doing at the party?  What do you have to do with Eren?”  I decided against calling him Jaeger.

“Why’s that your business?”

“If you helped him, I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.  If you hurt him, I’ll take you to the station with the rest of those fucks.”

“And what about him?  You’d take him to the station?”

I didn’t want to—I _don’t_ want to—but it would probably be best.  “He should be handed over to CPS.”  I know that.  I _know_ that, but I’ll be completely fucked if he tells anyone about me.  And anyway, what the fuck am _I_ going to do with him?

She crossed her arms and leaned her shoulder on the window, but kept her face toward me.  “People like me and him—we don’t trust you.  We don’t want your help.  We don’t want your pity.  We just want to be left alone to disappear.”  She looked at me without blinking.  “But you know that already, don’t you?”  

Yeah, no shit.  I didn’t trust Erwin at first, and I still barely do.  But all my bullshit aside, I don’t have any idea if Jaeger _wants_ to go to the police.  “So, which is it?  Were you helping Dietrich, or Eren?”

“Both.”  She turned her head.  “Neither.”  She didn’t have to say it for me to understand.  Whatever the exact situation was, she wasn’t doing anything for Dietrich because she had a choice in it.

I sighed.  “Where should I take you?”  I had her enter the address in my phone, and we reached it in silence.

As she opened the door to leave, she said, “don’t get his hopes up.  He still believes that it’s real.”

I sighed and lit a cigarette.  In the end, it’s not my choice to make.  I decided I’d take Jaeger back to mine and let him decide.  If he wants to come forward, I’ll let him, and I’ll just have to deal with whatever shit I get for it.  If he doesn’t, that’s all the better.  I’ll dump him in his little hole in the wall or wherever, and we can all go on forgetting about this goddamn nightmare.

About halfway through the ride back to my hotel, I heard that brat tossing and turning and moaning in the back.  Having a nightmare, probably.  I know all too well what that’s like.  I wonder if he’ll ever get a good night’s sleep again.  I wonder if he honestly ever has.

And then his moans graduated to full-on screams, and I wondered, should I wake him?  Touch him?  In any case, I couldn’t have some kid shrieking in the back of my shady-ass van.  I pulled over and reached into the back to grab his shoulders and stop him from writhing around.   "Hey, brat,”  I shouted over him.  Nothing.  I shook his shoulder.  “Jaeger. Wake up.”  He still didn’t wake up, and I started to shake him hard.  “Jaeger, wake up!"  I was completely done with being gentle.  I was completely fucking _done_ with losing my mind over this brat.  He finally looked up at me, bleary-eyed and puffy-faced, and it probably would have been really cute if the circumstances were different.  "There you are.”  I let out a short, exasperated breath.  “See, I was going to be nice and let you sleep, but you started screaming fucking bloody murder.”  I took my hands off of his shoulders and sat back on my haunches, muttering, “Can't even get fucking sleeping right."

"I'm sorry," came the soft reply, still cloudy with sleep and thick with emotion.  He sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes.

"Tch.” I crossed my arms.  “Don't do all that and then pretend everything's okay. Are you ready to tell me what happened yet?"  If he couldn’t bring himself to tell _me,_ then he wasn’t going to tell a real cop in a real interview.

His eyes, which hadn’t yet trained on anything in particular, found their way down to the floor.  "I told you, nothing happened."  When he looked back up at me, I grabbed him by the wrist and kicked one of the back doors open, pulling him so hard out the vehicle that he almost fell to the ground.  He bitched about it hurting, but what little patience my body contained had been used up long ago, and I wasn’t about to have it.  “No, it doesn't,” I mocked childishly, “nothing happened."  He stood up straight right before yarking all over the street, barely missing my boots.  "You couldn't have warned me, brat? Fucking disgusting.”  It was best, though.  The hospital was a no-go, and he didn’t look like he could handle his high.  “You're not going to do that again, are you? If you puke in there, you're going to fucking clean it."

He shook his head, holding his stomach, and looked relieved.  "I feel hella better now."

I gave him a look to convey that there’d be hell to pay if it weren’t true, but shut the back door and led him over to the passenger side by the elbow. "Don't step in that shit. Idiot."  He climbed inside the cabin and I shut the door behind him, still grumbling.  "Be glad you didn't get any on me."

As I got back behind the wheel and buckled my seatbelt, he asked, "Corporal, what happened to Annie?"

I resisted the urge to growl again.  "Your little girlfriend? I dropped her off somewhere in Gilbert."

"She's not—I mean, we're not anything like that."  I looked away.

He scoffed.  "I guess you just cozy up to anyone, huh?"  I don’t know why it pisses me off so much, but what kind of idiot do you have to be to let your guard down like that?  Even if they were friends, the fact that she did Dietrich’s bidding meant she shouldn’t be trusted.  And there he was, saving her ass and setting her free.

He didn’t say anything in response, and I left things silent for while. "So, what are you on right now?" I asked.

He grunted and shifted in his seat, slurring out an answer.  “Ecstasy?"

I scoffed.  Love Bug, no doubt.  “How's that treating you?"

"Not as well as it was two hours ago.   _Fuck_ , everything felt really nice about two hours ago."

I’m sure that two hours earlier, he was out of his mind and on the floor with his ass full.  It made me livid, but more than that, I wanted to know how he got into this mess.  "And why the _hell_ did you get in a car with Ian _fucking_ Dietrich?"

He squirmed around again.  "He didn’t exactly give me a choice. I was out with my friends and he was feeling me up in front of them.  It was so embarrassing.”

I had to ask myself again what _fucking_ brand of shit-brained _idiot_ would—  "You got in a car alone with that waste of human life because you got a little embarrassed?”  I couldn’t hold it in.  What in the actual hell was wrong with him? “Are you fucking kidding?"

He rolled his eyes and kept muttering goddamn bullshit.  “I haven't had a friend in five years.  Sorry that I wanted to seem like a normal teenager for a change. Fucking sue me."

I couldn’t breathe.  "Do you have a fucking death wish?"  I wanted for this fucking cunt to be punking me.  "Do you have _any idea_ who he is?  What he's capable of?”  I wanted to hit him, but settled for the steering wheel.  “You seriously could’ve died. _You could have fucking died_. Is that sinking in for you yet? Because you seem pretty goddamn clueless, you shit! You risked your life because you were too afraid to tell your little friends that you're a—" I felt like calling him a whore after all this was too much, even for me.

“You’ll call me all that, but stop short of whore?  You can say it. That I'm a whore. That's what you meant, right?"

 _That’s_ what he chose to focus on?  I clenched my jaw.  "Are you fucking—have you heard a damn word?"

He rolled his fucking eyes at me.  "Yeah, I've been listening.  I almost died, but guess what?  I'm still fucking here. Does it even matter?”  He actually started to yell at me, his voice cracking all over the place.  “I’m nobody to anyone, just a place to shove your dick in the middle of the desert.  So please, just explain to me why death would be so bad."

Even through my anger, I realized that _that_ was the real reason behind everything.  He’s not reckless because he’s stupid.  He’s reckless because he’s hoping it might kill him.  "You're so fucking clueless," I scoffed. "You are _really fucking clueless_."  And if this life kills him, it means he won't have to try to do it himself.

He made a strangled noise.  "Could you just slow down? You're going to kill us."

I looked at the speedometer; I hadn’t realized I’d crept up to ninety-five.  "I thought you didn't fucking care," I spat, putting my foot on the brake.  I didn’t say anything to him after that, and he did the same.  When we finally got back to the hotel, the brat was close to passing out.  I had to help him out of the car and through the lobby.  Thank god the staff knew I had something to do with law enforcement and left us alone.  "Take it easy, Jaeger," I said, leaning him against the wall of the elevator.

"Thanks."  I ignored it, and he said it again. "I mean it, really. Thank you."  

“Hm.”  I wasn’t so sure he’d feel the same way in the morning.  I got him into the suite and parked him on the couch.  “Relax a second,” I told him, heading to the kitchenette.  My fridge had just about fucking nothing in it, but I was able to give him a Gatorade and coax some food down his throat.  Things will go more smoothly when he wakes up because of it, although he fought me every step of the way, including when I literally carried his filthy ass to the bathtub.

"What the fuck, Corporal? There are lots of less embarrassing ways to carry someone,” he complained, squirming in my arms.

"You don't get to complain, brat." I sat him down on the side of the tub and started to undress him.

He punched me—not hard, but in a way that told me he wasn’t happy.   "Don't do that. Please, just let me be alone."

As if I’d fucking do that. "Brats who allude to suicide don't get to leave my sight. You've earned exactly zero minutes of you-time. It's us-time now."  He rolled his eyes and told me for the millionth time that nothing was wrong.  I wasn’t fucking having it.  "You really know how to test me, Jaeger. You're a terrible fucking liar. It's obvious that you don't want to get naked in front of me because you don't want me to see what happened.”  I had to keep talking, or else I’d lose it, because it was all true.  He was trying to hide what Dietrich had done to him, although I don’t have any idea why.  I knew what Dietrich did to all those other boys.  I knew what they found in that bedroom.  “If nothing really happened, then you're just being a little fucking brat. The only reason you'd mention wanting to die is because you're an attention-seeking little shit. There are people out there who have been through _real_ pain. So don't fucking belittle what they've been through with your 'nothing.'”  I know exactly what’s going to happen to him if he tries to hold this all inside.  “Unless, it's actually something."

He seethed.  "Fuck you.  I don't even know why you care. _We fucked once._ If you can't handle that sort of thing, then maybe you shouldn't pick up hookers."

I wanted to smack the shit out of him.  I could lose _everything_ for all I’ve done for him, but he was fine with being an ungrateful cunt.  Instead, I just walked out.  If that was the way he wanted it—if he really _did_ want to die, then he could fucking go ahead.  I didn’t want to care about it.

Of course, I realize that it’s all my fault.  He never asked for me to fuck him, or get him involved in my case, or get attached to him—because somehow, I’ve become attached to him—or do anything I’d done, really.  I made this all up in my head, and I got pissed when it wasn’t what I expected.

What the fuck am I expecting anyway?  What am I even doing?

But I sat down to write my journal entry, and Jaeger was on my mind the whole fucking time.  And when I suddenly realized that he hadn’t finished up or made a sound at all, I was almost paralyzed with the thought that he _really_ did it.  Just fucking offed himself in my goddamned suite.  I barged in there, my chest tight, thinking the worst—and fucking Christ, he was passed out with his head and arm hanging out the side.  I couldn’t think straight.  I reached for him, wrapped my arms around him, and he was warm.  And I could feel his breath on my neck and his heart beating against my chest, and I lost it.  Fucking bawling on the floor of a hotel bathroom, clutching this naked brat like it meant everything.

When I finally got it together, I pulled him out and plopped him on the bed, dripping and all.  This dipshit.  Blitzed and cut up, marks on his neck and wrists, bruised and pierced and pale, but he swore up and down that everything was fine.   _God_.  He came so fucking close to being another one of those dead kids.  Ilse would have found him in some ditch or dumpster or river, and he would have been another John Doe in a stack of dark-haired boys with light eyes and tan skin.

I couldn’t help it.  I got on the bed and held him close, just to feel his pulse.  Just to know that he was still alive.  And when I woke up next to him, I checked again.  He was out cold, but still alive.  I got out my first aid kit and did what I could, checking every once in a while that he was still breathing, because he didn’t move at all, even as I stitched up his cuts.  

And even now, sitting across from him, writing this, my heart skips a beat every time I look at him, because he looks like he might be—fuck, fuck, why do I care so goddamn much?  

Shit shit shit shit _shit_.


	7. Monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi is relieved to have Eren safe and sound with him, but he knows that Eren's struggle isn't over. As he tries to get Eren to come to terms with his trauma, Levi realizes he hasn't really done that himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own the things
> 
> Sorry I'm late trash but like...everything sucks right now
> 
> Please leave me comments because it makes everything a little less sucky
> 
> Thanks I love you all <3

_16 July, Phoenix, AZ_

This little buttfuck is going to be the end of me.  Seriously.  What the fucking hell does he think he’s doing?  Running off, telling me I’m—

You know what?  It doesn’t matter.  It’s better this way.  I can’t force him to be with me if he doesn’t want to be, and it’s all just easier if he’s not around.  It’s just like I told Ilse earlier, when she came running out right as I was getting in the car, hissing, “Levi, what the f—”

“I hope you got whatever you wanted out of that brat, because he ran off,” I grumbled, slamming the door shut.

She blinked at me.  “What do you mean?”

I gestured down the road.  “I mean, he fucking lit out.”

“It’s probably because you look like a fucking psycho.”  She reached for my face, but I slapped her hand back down.  She glared at me the way I do to everyone else.  “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“You heard him,” I spat.  “You _heard_ what he did.”

She rolled her eyes.  “So let’s put him _away_.  Convince him to—”

“Are you fucking nuts?  Look at the way that kid is now.  You think he’ll make it through a trial?”  That was if he even wanted one, which he made clear he didn’t.

She sighed in defeat.  “Well?  What now, then?”

I crossed my arms angrily.  “Now, nothing.  He’s gone.”

“So?  Go get him,” she shrugged.  “Clean that shit off your face and _get_ _him_.”

I scoffed, leaning back onto the car.  “I’m not fucking running after him.  I’ve done all I can.”  I was—I _am_ just sick of caring about it.

“Seriously?  After everything you’ve done for him—”  She grabbed my arm and got close to me, whispering, “what is he to you, exactly?”

I wrenched my arm back.  “He’s just some kid I tried to help.  There’s nothing I can do if he doesn’t want it.”

She threw her arms up.  “So?  You’re just gonna let him—”

“He doesn’t care, Ilse.  It’s a waste of my time to try if he’s not gonna do it.”

She made a face at me.  “What’s this _really_ about?”

“You really wanna know?”  I clenched my fists.  What I told her is true, even though there’s plenty more.  “Look, I was that kid once.  And I figured, if I could be there for him, he wouldn’t end up like me.”  

“An asshole?”  She looked legitimately pissed.

I rolled my eyes at her.  “Bye, Ilse.”

“Levi, wait—”  She sighed.  “Levi, you’re a cop.  And according to Commander Smith, you do _good_ work.  So...what’s so bad about being you?”

I wanted to scream.  She doesn’t need to know about shit like that.  “There are some _major_ reasons why I’m a hunter and not a ‘real cop.’  And somehow I’m here, but I should be fucking dead.”  Three times over.  “And you know as well as I do that if he keeps this shit up, you’re gonna find him in the morgue.”

She got all quiet and nodded.  “That’s fair.”

I sighed.  I didn’t want to deal with it anymore.  “I’m not allowed back.  So.”

She took my hand and squeezed.  “Take care, Levi.”

I almost didn’t say anything as I got behind the wheel, but right before I pulled away, I called out to her.  “You too.”  And now that I’m back here, all that’s left to do is pack up my shit and wait.  Even before I fucked everything, Erwin had basically told me I was done in Phoenix when he came strolling up to me at the station.  I prayed he wouldn’t ask about the kid.  “Levi!” Greeting me like we’re bosom-fucking-buds.  

I had taken the longest strides toward him that my tiny, useless legs would allow to head him off. “How did it go last night?”

He nodded his head back and forth.  “We know some of them got away, including some valuable victims,” he sighed, pausing just enough for me to know that it was a pointed statement, “but we got Dietrich, and that’ll go a long way.”

I crossed my arms.  “Hopefully we keep him this time.”  How much did Ilse say to him?  How much does he know?  “What happens now?”

“Gunter is pleased with your work, and the DEA has already sent payment for what you gave to them.” He shrugged.  “I’ll see what I have next for you.”

“Hm.”  He said it like he didn’t know, but he did.  He knew exactly where to send me already.

“Want to come talk to Commander Schultz?  We’ll cut you a check.”

I shook my head.  “Later.  I have something else to do.”

“Oh, right.  Gunter did mention your relationship with Detective Langnar.”  He said that word, ‘relationship’ like he knew exactly what he was saying.  “I’m glad that you two were able to help each other with the missing boys.  How did you know it was Dietrich again?”

“I didn’t.”  I shook my head, talking right out my ass.  “Not for sure, not until we found that evidence at the party.  I just had a hunch because of the nature of the crimes.”

“Uh-huh.” He knew I was lying, and he looked annoyed about it, but didn’t say anything directly.  He continued in that roundabout way of his.  “How did you know about the party again?”

 _You fucking dildo_.  “I get paid to do surveillance, don’t I?  I’m no good if I can’t keep track of a suspect.”

“I suppose that’s true,” he nodded incredulously.  “Well, I won’t keep you from her any longer.  I’m sure whatever business you’re on is important.”

I didn’t want him to know I had anything to do with Eren.  “If you call me giving her panties back important, then yeah.”  Of course, no matter what I said, he’d probably seen enough, like he always manages to.  My phone vibrated in my pocket.

He smiled like he was angry.  “I’m sure she appreciates it.”

I checked the text from Ilse and gave Erwin a sarcastic salute.  “Later, Commander.”  I stopped by the break room to nick a bottled water before heading down to the interrogation room where Ilse was trying to be a sneaky bitch, asking for the brat’s name.  “ _Ilse,_ ” I seethed.

She came back at me as if I were the one betraying anyone’s trust.  “Take a seat,” she said sternly, pointing with her head to the open chair beside her.  She was starting to hate me, but that always happens.

I made a show of sitting next to the brat, telling him to keep his goddamn mouth shut as I gave him the water.  Was that idiot really going to tell her his name?  Didn’t he realize what she’d do with it?  Although it didn’t look like he was exactly running at full speed.  He could barely open the bottle or get a word out.  I reached out for him, only to stop short of it.  Maybe he didn’t want to be touched.  I settled for trying to encourage him.  No matter if it was for Ilse, it would help him to talk about it, and he _needs_ to talk about it.

He started slowly, his eyes darting between me and her as he began to tell his story.  His voice was quiet and trembling.  "You didn’t have to do everything you did for me.  I know you were just following your bounty." He couldn’t even look at me.

I could only blink.  Was he fucking stupid?  As if I’d do all that just for money.  I couldn’t think of a response before Ilse got him talking again, telling us how he showered and was cuffed to the bed and pierced.  This time, I could barely look at him.  The way his voice shook made my blood boil.  I couldn’t stop imagining him being tortured, afraid and alone and at Dietrich’s mercy.  And by what he described, by the wounds that I saw, by everything I know about that crusty-ass cumsock, there’s not much mercy to be had.  Not when he could rape that kid repeatedly, not when he could choke him and cut him and get off on the sight of him in pain.

I wanted to press pause.  "Hey," I grated out.  I needed to stop hearing this, but the kid kept going.

"And I guess, for him, I really was the one, because he came back and branded me. The heart symbol on my hip that makes me his property.  That's when I finally contacted you. After that."

"Take a break,"  I said.  He looked like he needed it.  Ilse looked like she needed it.  I sure as holy fuck needed it.

He ignored me again.  "Then, I had to go to the party.  They gave me oxy and booze and x so I’d be doped up enough to let all those people do whatever they wanted with me."

I couldn’t hide the tremor in my voice when I tried again.  "You can stop."

He looked over at me and laughed.  “Don't you want to hear about how he fucked me raw?  Humiliated me?  Cut my face so he could lick off the blood? Don't you want to know why I wanted to die?"

I couldn’t do it; I jumped out of my seat, sending the chair to the floor.  ”Just shut the fuck up, all right?"  I haven’t felt that angry in a long time—god-fucking _shit,_ I still can hardly think about it.

The brat threw his fucking water bottle at me.  “You don’t get to do that.   _Y_ _ou_ wanted this.  You don’t get to force me to talk and take it all back.”

My first instinct was to punch him back, but just as I was able to stop myself, Ilse held my arm back.  “Whoa, whoa, hey!  Levi! Why don’t you take a walk?”  She didn’t say it like a suggestion.

I could barely contain myself.  “Yeah.”  I let the door slam behind me as I left and beelined back to Erwin.  He opened his mouth to spew whatever garbage he thought was necessary when I cut him off.  “Is Dietrich still here?”

He looked startled, for once.  “Uh, yeah, I think he hasn’t been transported yet.”

“Can I see him?”  If I couldn’t hide my anger from Erwin, he’d say no.  But so far, I was doing a shitty job.

He hesitated before answering.  “You’ll have to ask Gunter.  He’s in his—hey, Levi!”  He called after me as I stomped on over to Schultz’s office, but I didn’t slow down.  I nearly kicked in the door.

“Oh, Agent Ackerman, good to—”

“Could I speak to Dietrich?” I blurted out.  He looked just as taken aback as Erwin had.

“I—s-sure, but why—”

“What room’s he in?” I wanted to vomit.

“D—”  I spun on my heel to leave.  He yelled, “Bozado’s got the keys!”

“Lieutenant,” I spat in the face of the blond, “take me to D.”

He coughed and sputtered.  “What makes you think—”

“ _Please_ ,” I grated out, pressing my fists down against his desk. “take me to him.”     

He turned red and stood up from his chair.  “I suppose,” he muttered, bumbling down the hallway.  He fumbled with the lock on the door before pushing it open, letting me in first.  That was his mistake.  I slammed the door shut before that buttfuck could come in along with me, because _no one_ was going to see this.

I stood there in front of him, heart racing, breathing through my teeth, every muscle in my body tensed against beating him to death.  Dietrich cocked his head to the side and smiled.  “Oh, I see,” he laughed.

I curled my hands around the back of the metal chair across from him.  “Do you?”  Better than around his neck.  For now.

His cuffs rattled against the table as he scratched the side of his face.  “Maybe I should have realized that you’re not one of us.”  He turned his head the other way.  “But, you _are_ something.”

The metal bit into my palms as I squeezed my fists.  “And what would that be?”

“Not sure yet,” he shrugged with that damn smirk.  “I’ll get it.”

I don’t have the patience for interrogation.  I let go of the chair and walked around in a circle before I leaned against the wall and crossed my arms.  “Why him?”  More than anything, that’s what I wanted to know.

“Mm.” He licked his lips, and my stomach lurched.  “You’re asking the wrong person.”

 _Fucking really?_  “Okay.”  I pushed off the wall and came back to the chair, because if I didn’t busy my hands with that, I’d busy them with knocking out his teeth.  “Why all those other boys, then?”

He shrugged.  “They weren’t _him_.  So, it was okay if I used them up.”

I couldn’t play this game anymore.  I lunged across the table for him, holding him by the collar and spitting into his face, “Listen, shit-dick, you—”

“Oh-ho-ho- _ho_ , I _remember_ you,” he laughed.  “You ran with _those_ two.  Yeah.  I know what you are.”

I threw him back down into his seat.  “What’s that?”  But I knew exactly what he meant this time.

“A _fiend,_ like me.”  He leaned back in his chair.  “Which one?  If you’re from back then...crank?” He rubbed his chin and frowned.  “No.  You’ve got all your teeth.  So, how about…”  He brought his shoulders down and craned his neck to look at me from below.  “Horse.  Right?”  I didn’t answer.  He nodded repeatedly, cocky and grinning.  “ _Yeah_ , you three were good customers.” He laughed, and it rang loud against the walls.  “You know, when you left them, they came to me.  Been slinging for me ever since.   _They_ made it big.”

So, that’s how they got here?  “Until they got pinched, just like you.”

He shrugged and looked around.  “Been here before.  It doesn’t last long.”

“It will.”  For Jaeger, I wouldn’t let anything ruin this case.

“If you say so.”  He sat casually in his seat, looking at me.  “Hey.  I want him tight when I get back, so don’t fuck him too—”

I couldn’t do it anymore.  I roared, “ _No_!” as I flung the chair at him.  I barely registered someone banging on the door, calling my name.  All I could really pay attention to was the feeling of my throat tearing up as I screamed and my muscles straining as I beat him with every ounce of strength I had.  I forgot what it was like to feel someone’s skin ripping open and bones breaking under my fists.  I forgot what it was like to feel like _that_.  What it’s like to care about someone so much it _hurts_.  And now he’s not even—

 _Fuck, fuck, fuck_.  It’s probably my fault.  It was probably too much for him to deal with everything and see me covered in blood and screaming at him to get in my car.  But I just want him—I just _want_ him—

* * *

I don’t understand this idiot at all.  He wakes up trying to fuck me, saying shit about ways he’d kill himself, and an hour after he fucking _abandons_ me, Ilse’s calling me saying that he’s outside the station. I had to convince him to go to the damn place with the promise of anonymity, and he's just fucking standing around in plain view.  “He’s just leaning against the wall, looking like fresh hell.  Want me to bring him inside?  You gonna pick him up?”

“No.”  Of course I _was_.  Clearly he’d gone back to the station for a reason.  Otherwise, he would've just gone home.  I wanted him to ask for it, though.

“ _Levi_ , come—oh hey, wait.  Who’s that?”

“What?” I growled.

“Some skinny blond thing.  Came rolling up, parked far away.  Walked up to the kid from behind and got his attention.  Now they’re talking...and now they’re leaving together.”

I wanted to be angry, but I just don’t have the fucking energy anymore.  “You just let a hooker pick up a john outside of your station?”  I pulled out a cigarette.  “That’s bad work, Langnar.”

“Want me to follow them?”

“Do whatever you want.” I hung up and threw the phone across the couch.  I’d already told her that I wasn’t going to try anymore.  And now I know where Jaeger and I stand.  I’m going to go my way, and he’s going to keep spreading his legs for the highest bidder.  I don’t have to think about the confused smile he made when I laughed at the fact that he was wearing Ilse’s shirt this morning, or tend to his wounds, or listen to him fucking snoring, or wonder what he’s thinking behind those green eyes.

I don’t have to give a shit anymore.  What was I even supposed to do with some dumb brat anyway?

Fuck him.

* * *

 _God_.  He came _home_.


End file.
